


Coffee Writers

by screwtodayimsleeping



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Coffee Shops, Fanfictions, Fluff, Grisha is an asshole, M/M, Very fluffy, diverts from Coffee Shops, erenxlevi - Freeform, ereri, levixeren - Freeform, riren - Freeform, smutty dreams, some violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-03
Updated: 2014-11-30
Packaged: 2018-02-11 13:23:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 32
Words: 85,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2069826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/screwtodayimsleeping/pseuds/screwtodayimsleeping
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Levi is an anti-social college kid who has to keep his obsession with his OTP hidden, as well as his string of fanfictions, fanboy posters, and other nerdy things. The only place he can be free to write is at his favorite coffee shop. Life is as it has been until a chance run in with a famous fanfiction writer changes everything.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Yay! Coffee shops! We love them! Onward with the fanfiction! And please feel free to comment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note: Levi is different than normal, because in order to make the story what it is, he is an otaku, and thus fangirls at times, leading him to be a little OOC. If that bothers you, then don't read.

I sat at the small table in my corner of the coffee shop and typed away at my orange cased laptop. Subconsciously I reached out and took a sip of my Americano, not looking away from my writing. I was in the middle of the seventh chapter of my fanfiction and was trying to decide what to make the chapter about.

Plenty of people passed through the snug little building that was the 104th Cafe, ranging from old couples to kids and their parents, but the majority of the people inside were college students like me. It was summer time though, so the college-kid to other people ratio was more evened out today.

I sighed and sat back in my chair, thinking about what to write. It was hard. I had written the past six chapters with general ease, but now I was at a rut, and my readers were waiting expectantly.

Several teenaged girls passed me and I pushed the lid of my laptop down a little bit, not wanting them to notice that I was writing a fanfiction. A yaoi fanfiction at that.

Plus, I didn’t want that to be a rumor that got out and would ruin my reputation (my oh-so-large reputation, said sarcastically). I certainly didn’t want to be dubbed as an anime watcher and fanfiction writer.

I didn’t look like a sappy high school girl who fangirled in the corners of her room. I wasn’t even a girl. I was clearly a guy, with dark raven locks that rose above my undercut and sharp silver eyes that made me look fairly unapproachable. That’s what Hanji said about me and I agreed with her.

The girls, laughing now, walked out of the shop with their orders and I relaxed as I pushed the lid back up. I leaned forwards, hoping that glaring at the heading, “Chapter 7”, would give me an epiphany as to what to write in it. When nothing came,  I sighed, then glancing behind me to make sure no one was peering over my shoulder, I switched tabs and was greeted instantly by a heated picture of two men wrapped in each other's embrace, kissing.

I scrolled down my tumblr, looking at the massive amount of fan art of the two characters, whether it was kissing, holding hands, being bashful, or doing things beyond a PG-13 rating. Those particular posts I quickly scrolled past. I loved my OTP being together, but seeing their manly parts exposed for any number of reasons made me uncomfortable.

Although part of me said I shouldn’t mind, what with all the smut I’ve read. I’ve read countless scenes of their heated smut, as non-realistic as it was. I really shouldn’t be thinking about it now, not while I’m in public. However, I’ve been able to master the art of not changing expression while reading smut in public places. It took a while, but I surely am one of the masters.

I am startled when a backpack hits me in the face.

I hiss and subconsciously click the mouse, changing the screen to a different, less embarrassing tab, a habit I’d started after a girl had caught me looking at a video of Hatsune Miku maybe three years ago. She had laughed and sat down in front of me and chatted for an hour about how funny I was, while I kinda had just sat there in my mortification. Nevertheless, she had decided from that point on that she was my friend, and Hanji had stuck around ever since.

I look up as the person looks down at me. He is blushing from embarrassment and stuttering an apology, but I’m not really listening, because the face looks familiar in a terrifying way. The brunette hair messily swept across his forehead, the face shape, and oh my god the eyes, are the exact same as one of the characters in my OTP.

I can feel my eyes widen slightly at the realization, but control myself and settle my face into an angered look.

“Hey, watch where you’re swinging that bag, brat!”

He is looking at me with a startled expression, and in the end, he really is staring at me. I sigh and reiterate myself.

“Be careful not to hit people with your bag when you walk.”

He shakes his head and finally seems to make sense of my words. “Oh, you’re right, I’m sorry.” He gives me another deep glance before turning and settling into a table in the corner behind me.

Shit. I guess I can’t look at my OTP anymore. Now I have to be doing something more college-student looking.

I decide to open up a book I’ve downloaded and read it, ignoring the boy behind me. He is silent as well besides a quiet typing on his laptop, so a few hours go by uneventfully.

The shop is about to close when I finally put my laptop into its case and pack the rest of my things up. My coffee is untouched and undrinkable now that it’s sat there for quite a while. I peer behind me and wonder why the teen is still there. I’ve always been the last person to leave, so it’s surprising when there’s someone else there.

His laptop is still open and glowing faintly in the dim lighting, and it shines duly onto his face, and I realize that he is asleep. I should wake him up.

I walk back to his table and am about to shake him when something on his screen catches my eye. I look at it and see a Google Doc open and a bunch of writing on a file. I wouldn’t have thought much of it, but several familiar words pop out. They caught my immediate attention, and, the boy forgotten, I put my full attention to the screen, and my eyes widen as I read the most recent sentence;

 _The titan shifter gasps in surprise as his Corporal slides up to him and snuggles into his neck, then leaves a small kiss on it, making the teen shiver_.

It is taking a while to process, but then I make progress.

_No.fricking.way...he ships TS-C (Titan Shifter-Corporal) too?_

I look at the page count, and my eyes widen as I see that there are over a hundred pages. Woah, this is a long fanfiction. My curiosity overcomes me, and I decided not to wake him yet. I scroll all the way to the top...and freeze when I read the title: **Once in a Dark Moon**.

 _No....way...in...hell..._ Words are failing me, and my mind is spinning.

 **Once in a Dark Moon** is one of the most popular TS-C fanfictions that has been written. Literally, anyone in the fandom knows about and has kept up with it, myself included. The amount of hits it has on it top any other, and it is gushed about on tumblr and just about anywhere else. It is so full of passion, love, lust, and heartbreak (yes, I’ll admit, I’ve cried while reading it) that it makes you love the work, then hate it with a passion, and feel feels like you’ve never felt before (woah that sounds weird to me).

I look at the boy behind me. I can’t believe it. It had to be copied. I read the first few lines and recognized the famous opening : _Looking up at the stars, the teen could be lost in wonder for hours. But what really captivated him was the moon. It was full, and its brightness banished the shadows from his face. He was motivated by its beauty...and the beauty of another bright creature, but this one closer to his reach._

I couldn’t believe that it was real. Then a thought hit me, and more to prove to myself that it wasn’t this teen who had written such an emotional story, I opened another tab and found the fanfiction site as the top result. I clicked on it, and I was lucky, because it went straight to the homepage. He was still logged in. I looked at the top corner, where the name was...and froze again.

Holy shit.

The username was _100yearsinpeace_. That was the name of the writer for the story.

I will say again the only thought running through my mind: holy shit.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi gets feels.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter! I'm super surprised at how fast the amount of people reading this went up! Well, I'm gonna keep going.

I sat there, open mouthed for a moment before realizing it and closing my mouth, looking back at the boy sitting slack against his chair, lips slightly parted as he shifted in his sleep, but not waking up. I could only look in admiration and awe.

This...this guy was like a celebrity in the world of TS-C shippers, who didn’t have a picture to go off of to know what the mysterious writer looked like. And now here I was, staring at him.

Oh my god. I couldn’t believe it. This was incredible. I suddenly thought about the fact that the whole time, he had been typing. Had he been updating?

I realized then that I had the most wanted, golden opportunity that any follower of the fanfiction wanted open to me. His file was still open. I could read ahead.

 _I could read ahead of everyone._  

I lifted my hand to the laptop, shaking with anticipation. I was about to read material that was new, raw, and that no one besides the writer had seen, and before it was all posted as well! I couldn’t believe my luck.

I suddenly noticed something, and my heart skipped from pure excitement; there were thirty seven chapters here. There were only twenty nine updated online.

I was going to get to read eight chapters ahead of everyone else.

I scrolled up to the end of chapter 29 and was about to read when a blond head peaked over the counter. I knew who it was instantly. He came out from behind the glass and walked up to us, slowing when he saw that the other was asleep.

“Levi, we’re closing-”

“Yeah, I know. Don’t worry, just give me a minute. I’ll get this guy.” The blond haired teen nodded and headed back to the register to close up.

I hissed impatiently. I needed to read this stuff. I suddenly had an idea. I highlighted the eight chapters and copied them, then went to his email, which was also logged in, (sheesh, he shouldn’t just leave everything logged in all the time; what about hackers?) and set up a draft. I pasted the precious words into it and addressed it to myself. I clicked send, holding my breath. After what felt like several agonising years, the “Sent Successfully” bubble popped up, and I breathed a sigh of happiness and relief. I made sure to delete the email from his account, then made sure everything was exactly how it had been before. Then, buzzing with nervous energy, I shook the teen in front of me.

“Hey, man, you need to get up.” He turned his head from side to side, then finally his eyes opened drowsily. That didn’t last long, and they flew open when they registered my face. His arm seemed to shoot out on its own and it slammed the lid of his laptop shut.

“Sheesh, I didn’t look at your stuff. Calm down.” I reassured, but I shook inside as I lied to him.

The eyes softened and the teen opened his mouth, only to close it, then to open it again. Honestly, it was kind of entertaining. If this guy hadn’t written one of the most popular fanfictions for my fandom, I would’ve laughed, but my respect kept me quiet.

“They’re closing the shop, so you should pack up.” I turned around to grab my things, trying to look casual, when I heard something from his mouth; “Corporal?”

I stopped. What? Did he just really call me Corporal? As in, the same Corporal from our fandom?

I thought fast and decided it would be better to act as if I had no clue what he was saying. I flattened my face and turned to him. “What did you just say?”

The teen blushed, and I nearly hitched a breath as I registered how similar he looked to the titan shifter when he blushed in fan art.

“Uh...I’m sorry. You just...remind me of someone.”

“Huh. Well, I am certainly no ‘Corporal’, as you called me.” I turned and walked back to him, and held out a hand, keeping a straight face despite the shaking inside me. “I’m Levi.”

The teen looked nervously at my hand for a second, then smiled and took it, and I swear I felt a spark from his touch that went shooting up my arm and straight into my little fanboy heart.

“I’m Eren.”

 _Eren_. I wanted to smile so badly right now, because I had just received information that no other fan of his knew about, unless I was wrong, which I hoped I wasn’t.

“Well, Eren, now that you’ve already invaded my space here once, you may as well do it more often.” I wanted to shrink at the bold words I had just spoken to him. I hoped he didn’t notice. “You live around here? I would have thought I’d recognize you if you did.”

He shrugged. “I just came here. I’m here the whole summer because I’m scoping out Trost University for next year.”

I stood straighter in excitement at this. I went to Trost. Next year I’d be a senior. That meant that he would be a freshman if he got in.

My arm suddenly felt strange, and I looked down to see that we were still clasping hands. He saw me notice and looked down too, then we both pulled our hands away in embarrassment.

“I was kinda...also scoping a good work and study place for the summer, and I think I was just invited, is that right?” He sounded so ernest all of a sudden, and I finally relented to a small smile.

“Yeah, sure Eren. You can crash here if you want.”

It was then that the blond boy finally came over to kick us out.

Eren introduced himself, and the blond responded, saying that his name was Armin. It suddenly occurred to me that I hadn’t known his name before, despite having come to this shop regularly for the past few years.

We walked outside into the cooler air, and Armin locked the doors before waving goodbye to us and walking in the opposite direction. Eren and I walked side by side for a minute before we realized that we were walking the same way, so we made small talk.

Turns out, Eren was renting an apartment very close to mine (as in, across the street and down a half block), so I walked with him to the door, and said good night. He smiled at me and opened the door, then left me outside. As I turned and walked to my own apartment, I let the fanboy inside of me grow more and more excited.

I started running about half-way up the stairs, and ran all the way to my room, key at the ready and I unlocked my room quickly. I burst through the door, slammed it shut, and dumped my bag at the door, something I never did.

Then as I sat on my bed, I let the full weight of what had happened hit me, and I released the flood of emotions I had been holding back while talking to him. To Eren.

 _Eren_. I let a wide smile cover my face and I rocked back and forth, thinking about it. Him. Eren. I knew his name. I had met him. My hands had come up to my mouth unconsciously and I had started giggling. One of the most famous writers in the whole fandom, and I’d met him. And I’d convinced him to stop by the coffee shop more often.

I was giggling uncontrollably now. If any of my friends had seen me right now, they would have thought I had had a mental breakdown and would be calling the psychiatric ward right now. Ah, ignorance is bliss.

I grabbed my pillow form behind me and held it tightly in my arms. I was full out laughing, and it was raw and broken and excited at the same time and I was shaking from fanboy feels. I fell onto my back and wrapped myself around the pillow, noticing that it was one of my body pillows. I took a second to make sure it wasn’t the one with the titan shifter on it. It was my blank one, thankfully.

I shook with mirth for a while; I’m not entirely sure how long. I finally felt the motivation to get up and put my bag in its proper place. I was too tired to do anything else, so I curled up on my sheets and turned out my bedside light.

I rolled over into my most comfortable position, still wrapped around my body pillow. I snuggled into it, and right before I drifted off into my fanboy dreams, I smiled as I remembered his name again.

_Eren._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to write in a little fanboy explosion at the end because that's kinda how I react when I get the feels...minus the body pillow...


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi reads into the secret chapters, and Hanji comes into play.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fanfic just exploded. I'm loving this. Anyway, Levi has some dramatic feels...

I woke up to the sunlight hitting my eyes. “Shiiiit...” I groaned as I realized that in my tiredness I had forgotten to close the blinds to the large window right beside my bed, which would always pour the sunlight into my room unless they were shut.

I got up, shielding my eyes, and closed the blinds. My eyes adjusted to the scene and I was startled at the amount of items carelessly strewn across my floor. That never happened, granted that all the said items were pillows. Then it hit me: I had thrown them across the room, and I had been doing something else while throwing them. I hadn’t been angry, so why-

It came back in a blaze of remembrance; I had woken up again a few hours after the original incident, remembered what had happened earlier, and flown into another fanboy explosion. I had grabbed my body pillows out from the darkest parts of my closet, and gathered them around me as I opened my laptop and dedicated myself to re-reading the entire story of **Once in a Dark Moon**.

I had only read the whole thing once. I hadn’t re-read any of it, which thinking back on it was a really stupid thing for me to do. I wasn’t a super fast reader, but I was still fast, so I told myself I could do it all again in a few hours.

I had re-experienced every emotion, from hate, happiness, and sadness, but it was heightened by the reminder that I had met the writer of it. At a particularly happy part, where the shifter was in the process of telling his feelings to the Corporal, but doing it in a slow, embarrassed way, I couldn’t handle my feels and had thrown the pillows across the room, squealing like a seven-year-old. I had gotten to the end of the most recent chapter, 29, then fallen back into bed with a happy sigh and fallen asleep instantly.

I felt slight embarrassment when I remembered it. I rarely ever had fanboy attacks that large. Those were the type where I switched genders and became a wild fangirl. The story was just that good, and the writer was so similar to the shifter. No, not the writer, Eren.

Then I stopped in the middle of the room and nearly stopped breathing when I remembered.

 _The email_. The email I had sent myself. The email that had all of the future content in it, eight chapters ahead of everyone else. In my possession.

I swear there was a large breeze as I raced back to my bed and attacked my laptop, forcing the lid open so fast its a wonder it didn’t break.

I pounded out my password and opened my email. My excitement was slightly dimmed at the username that had sent me the email that I recognised: titanslayr4thewin. I brushed it off and opened it.

There it all was; eight chapters of pure happiness for me to consume. Gathering my blankets around me again, I took a deep breath and began to read chapter 30.

I shook as large quiet tears slipped down my face. This couldn’t be happening. Not now, not when everything was going so well!

I was near the end of chapter 32, and I was being crushed by the amount of feels that had been in these few chapters alone. Chapter 30 had been a normal enough chapter, but in chapter 31 the shifter and the Corporal had a rather...dynamic smutty evening. They then comforted each other and confessed the full extent of their feelings. I confess that at that point I had to turn around and shriek into my pillows from excitement.

Then came the chapter I was on, 32. I was feeling so broken right now. Through tears I re-read the most recent paragraphs:

_The shifter fell to his knees, eyes brimming with tears, but he refused to let them spill, for that would just show weakness. He looked up at the most important person in his life, and through the mask of no emotion, he could still read his lover like an open book; the Corporal was holding back tears as well._

_“Why? Why would you keep this from me? After all the sacrifices we made, all the people we saved together...” the shorter man had to take a deep shuddering breath. “...why not tell me this? Why would you hide your...” The Corporal’s voice broke at this point, and he couldn’t finish._

_The shifter looked up into the face of the man who was his everything; to the man he wanted to be with all of his life, the man he never wanted to hide things from...besides this one thing. But it was no use now. All he saw in the eyes of his lover was sympathy...towards him. And he knew deep in his heart that it was gone. Everything they had worked for,  all the trust they had built; it was all gone..._

_...because of him._

I almost wanted to fall into a coma and never wake up. I was crying so hard the screen disappeared and I couldn’t read on. So I just sat there and bawled, letting out loud wet cries. I was crying so hard that I didn’t register the sound of my door opening and a voice coming from it. “Whoo, so clean, just like-”

The figure froze in the doorway for a split second as I looked up in shock and surprise. I couldn’t tell who it was, because my vision was blurred, but as the figure dropped everything she was holding and ran to my bed, her face became clear: it was Hanji.

My eyes widened and I struggled to change the tab before she saw the precious words on my screen. _Shit, shit, shit..._

“Levi! What happened? Did someone die? Did the president die? Did your parents die? Did...” she saw my screen. Only for a moment, because it was exactly at that point I was finally able to close my email.

She stood at my bedside and said with amused sympathy, “Levi, are you reading a super emotional fanfiction?”

If anyone else had asked me, I would’ve gone ahead and said my parents had died. But it was Hanji, the only friend of mine who knew about my fanboy side. Plus, she also was a TS-C shipper, so we could relate on that.

I sniffed loudly, and she understood. “Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you get this emotional over a fanfiction before. It must be really good then.” She sat herself down on my bed and gathered me into her arms. At any other time I would’ve complained, but I was still too broken up from what I had just read.

She held me like that for about a minute as I collected myself. Then she started brushing her fingers through my hair, and since I was still recovering I let her continue. She was also the only one who knew about how I liked it when people stroked my hair, and only she and my mother were allowed to do it.

I finally regained my speech. “Get off me, glasses.” My voice was raw and broken sounding from all my crying.

Hanji understood. “Ok. So, should we do this marathon another day, or...”

I remembered then. Hanji and I were supposed to marathon every episode of our fandom up to this point. It was something we had been planning for a month or so, and we had both been super excited.

“No,” I replied, pulling out of her arms and heading to the kitchen. “We’re doing this now. Plus I think it would make me happier after reading that fanfiction to actually see my OTP.”

Hanji snorted. “Well, I hope you kept some of your tears in for the several select episodes where you’ve always cried.”

I cursed as I remembered that there were several episodes where I cried, no matter what, and of course the end of the first episode was one such point, because the titan-shifter’s mother is eaten by a titan in front of him, and I couldn’t help but cry every time I saw the look of horror and shock on his face.

“I think I may have a little juice left.” I set to work making coffee and Hanji dug through my pantry looking for the special stash of junk food we kept for just these kind of occasions. It really says a lot that Hanji knows exactly where to look for everything in my apartment. I can say the same for hers, but it’s a bit harder to navigate through the mess of science-related projects and such everywhere.

Once everything was ready, we sat down on my couch and Hanji dramatically popped in the disc that we had put every episode on. I turned off the lights, and sat down next to her right as the music started.

Turns out I did have some juice left, but not as much as usual. Only several tears came at the shifter’s mom’s death. Hanji on the other hand was running on a full tank, and she was bawling at the sight.

We watched the full nine-ish hours of the anime before the final scene came. As part of the wall broke and a titan face appeared in the hole, Hanji jumped. Then the screen went dark for a minute before the screen turned blue, indicating that it was over.

We both sighed in unison. Hanji turned to me and said to me, “I noticed more times where the Corporal noticed the shifter this time.”

“I know! And the amount of time that he spends looking after him!” I responded.

“I still have trouble watching the court scene,” she said, shivering. “The Corporal can be ruthless sometimes.”

“Well that’s part of his job as ‘Humanity’s Strongest’, isn’t it? Plus he was only doing it to save the shifter!” I retorted. Truth be told, I had trouble with that scene as well.

“You look like him,” Hanji suddenly said. “The Corporal.”

I looked at her in surprise. “What?”

“You kinda look like the Corporal! No, not kinda; you look exactly like him!” Hanji started bouncing and clapping her hands.

My mind flew back to the cafe, when Eren had called me “Corporal’. Did I really look like him? “How do I look like him?”

Hanji was pulling out her phone, getting a picture. “Here,” she said after a second, smile splitting her face, holding up her phone. I looked as she talked. “You both have the same hair, and I mean the EXACT same hair, it’s the same color, you both always have little to no expression on your faces in public, you’re both short...” At this I threw a couch pillow at her. “...and you have the same eyes.”

I thought to myself for a minute. Then I went over to a mirror and looked into it. I could suddenly see what Hanji had been saying. I looked at the picture, then slacked my face into its normal blank look. My eyes widened instantly and I stepped back; it had been nearly identical.

Ok, now that was creepy.   

Hanji was bouncing higher on the couch now. “See? See, I told you so!” She got up and hugged me, smiling. I suddenly had a thought as I looked at us in the mirror.

“You know, if you put your hair up, you would look exactly like the crazy scientist woman.”

Hanji shivered at the thought. “I never put my hair up, and you know that. It feels weird.” She went over to the door and started to grab her things.

“Oi! You aren’t leaving without helping me clean up this place!” She gave a melodramatic sigh and turned around, a smile on her lips. “Darn,” she said. “I almost got out of it.”

“Yeah, that’s gonna happen,” I snorted.

We spent the next twenty minutes cleaning up. By the time we were done, my apartment looked as if we hadn’t just been sitting for nine hours watching our favorite anime and obsessing over it.

Hanji finally grabbed her bag from the door and was walking through it when she stopped, with a loud, “OH!” I looked at her in annoyance; I was heading back to my room to keep reading.

She threw down her bag and grabbed my hands. “You’ll never guess what just got updated!”

I looked at her with mild curiosity. We kept up with the same fanfictions, so we would always race to see who got to it first. “Which one is it?”

“ **Once in a Dark Moon** got updated!” Hanji shrieked, leaping on the spot, still holding my wrists.

My heart dropped. Wait, did that mean I copied all of that for nothing, since he already updated all of it?

Hanji mistook my face for disappointment. “Haha, I got to it first, didn’t I?” She ran back over to the door and grabbed her bag. “I found it on my way over here, I’m halfway through!”

Trying not to betray my emotion, I asked her, “How many chapters?”

Hanji snorted with partial disappointment. “Only one, like always. The writer put out chapter 30!”

All my sadness left and blew out the window. I had never felt so relieved. “Ah, ok then. Thanks for rubbing it in, Hanji.”

She laughed as she walked out the door. “Well, at least I told you, right?” The door shut behind her and I could hear her laughter disappear down the hall.

As soon as it was gone, I smiled and walked back into my room. As I typed my password, I said, “Well, Hanji, you haven’t beaten me in anything.” I snuggled back into my comforter to finish the heart wrenching chapter, and my newly refilled tank of tears was emptied again as I read. **  
**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh Hanji.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi gets lost and meets a certain someone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow this was a grueling chapter to write. I literally typed the last word, copied it, pasted it, and posted without checking anything. Hopefully it's alright.

My eyes were glazed over as I finally got to that last line that I had already read before. I slowly shut my lid and tried to process everything I had read. These chapters were going to rip the fans apart. Every emotion that had been spread throughout the fic before were joined up again within eight chapters.

I had cried, laughed, and gasped so many times I felt like I had no soul anymore. I felt empty, like everything inside me had dissolved into a puddle of feels.

I sighed and unwrapped myself from my sheets. I needed to go outside and walk around. I looked at my clock; it was late, nearly 11, but I needed the air. I grabbed my jacket off the peg near the door and unlocked my door.

I softly walked down the stairs and out the door. I took a deep breath and started to walk. I wasn’t really thinking about where I was walking, I just let my inner thought consume everything in my mind.

I blinked and realized that I was in a park that I didn’t recognise. I stopped in my tracks and spun around, taking in the unfamiliar surroundings.

Shit...was I lost?

I looked around and pulled out my phone. I needed to call someone. My phone wasn’t super fancy, so I couldn’t look up where I was.

Hmm...who to call? Hanji wouldn’t be reliable...but she’d be the easiest one to explain my situation to. I finally relented and called her.

She picked up after 4 rings. “Hello?” I had clearly woken her up.

“Hey, four eyes.” I felt a little bad, but not enough to really care. “I need your help.”

“What happened now?” I heard the rustle of sheets as she got up. “I got lost somewhere downtown and I need you to help get me out of here.” I responded, glad my voice didn’t reflect my internal embarrassment.

“Well, I don’t know if I can help...” I stopped her, hissing. “No, really, you need to help me.” I sat down on a park bench and listened to the sounds of her shuffling around. She groaned and said drowsily into the phone, “Ok, but I’ll need a road or something so I can help track you.”

I looked around. I saw no roads; it was all trees and benches and sidewalks. “I don’t see any...” I said helplessly into the phone. “Ugh, just ask someone at the park to help you!” She mumbled, clearly about to fall asleep.

I snorted in annoyance. “Hanji, it’s nearly midnight, no one is gonna be in a park at mid-”

“Levi?” I heard from behind me. I spun around and nearly dropped the phone;

It was Eren.

I gaped, and I about near fell over from shock. What was Eren doing here? “What are you doing here?”

He looked slightly embarrassed as he spoke. “I needed some fresh air because I’ve spent all night...um...” he looked down at the ground. “...typing a paper.”

I understood instantly; he had been updating. I had to hide my excitement. _ohmygodohmygodohmyGOD!_

“Ah, understandable.” I responded, knowing perfectly well that it wasn’t. There would really be no reason for him to be typing up a paper in the middle of the summer. But I let that slide and pretended that I was that gullible.

“What are you doing out here?” Eren questioned. “I’m usually the only one here at this time in the morning.”

Oh shit. How was I supposed to respond to that? I couldn’t just say, _“I was reading your fanfiction. Like, the new stuff that you haven’t posted yet, and hey! I looked at your things and sent everything to myself. By the way, your writing is amazing and can I have your autograph?”_

I didn’t want to risk him running away and me never seeing him again. My fanboy adoration looked up to him so much (in both respects, curse my shortness), and I couldn’t risk losing the chance to befriend him.

“I just...finished reading an emotional...piece...and needed to think it through.” I responded. I inwardly cursed my hesitations. You’d have to be really dumb to think that I was telling the full truth.

His eyebrows raised, but he let it slide. “Ah. Alright. What was it you had been saying into your phone?”

I realized then that I was still holding my phone. I raised it back up to my ear. I could hear Hanji freaking out on the line. “Levi? Levi answer me! If you’re not Levi and holding him hostage, this is the president of defence, and if you hurt my colleague, I will send missiles directly to your location!” I groaned at her over-reaction. “Hanji, I’m fine.”

“Oh my god, Levi, don’t do that to me! What happened?” I looked at Eren. “I met a...friend at the park.” I tested the word. I was secretly shaking at the idea that I had just called Eren my friend. Hopefully he would be okay with that. He smiled in encouragement and nodded, and my fanboy heart leaped.

“A friend? Besides me and Erwin? Please elaborate, because that has to be nearly impossible.” Hanji suddenly sounded more awake. I couldn’t really blame her, since those two were pretty much my only close friends. Hanji was the only one who knew the “real me”, as she called my fanboy side. Erwin was my taller blond friend who behind his back Hanji and I both had agreed that he looked and acted like the Commander of the Scouting Legion from the anime.

“He’s actually someone I met just yesterday.” I glanced back at Eren. And he’s super important to both of us, I thought, but I didn’t say that out loud. If Hanji really knew who he was, she would be begging to hear him and then stalk him for the rest of his existence.

“Ooh, and he’s already your friend? You’re going kinda fast, aren’t you?” Surprise was evident in her voice. I sighed and turned slightly away from Eren. “Seriously, it’s fine. But I’ve gotta go, so...yeah. I’ll talk later.”

“Wait! I haven’t even helped you out of the park yet!” I heard Hanji call out right before I hung up on her. I wanted some time with my new friend.

I turned back to see Eren looking at the ground in mild disinterest. His head snapped back up as I walked towards him and as he grinned at me I had to hitch a quiet breath. That grin, that face...oh my god, those eyes. Everything about him screamed “titan-shifter” to me. I was suddenly reminded of Hanji’s earlier proclamation about how I looked just like the Corporal. I could see it now, the shifter smiling with happiness as the Corporal walked to him, then they wrapped their arms around each other, bringing faces close for a passionate kiss and...oh my god I could picture it so well.

I forced myself to walk over and I looked at him. “As you were saying?” He shifted his eyes upward in thought, then remembered and looked back at me. “What you had been saying into the phone before...you’re lost aren’t you?”

I looked to the side in embarrassment. He had heard most of the conversation then. I then had a thought and glanced back at him. “Are you lost too? Aren’t our apartments really close to each other? How did you even get here?”

He straightened as he said, “I drove here. This is one of my favorite parts of the whole city.” As a seeming after thought, he blurted, “If you’re really lost, I could drive you home.” I started and snapped my face to his. His eyes widened as he realized what he’d just said and he backed away, stuttering. “I-I mean...only if you r-really need one!”

My heart was swelling from excitement. Without a second thought, I barged ahead. “If you could, that’d be awesome.” I hoped he would do that. I could be with him a little longer. He brightened up. “Cool! Well, we could go now, but I just started my walk.” He stared at the ground before continuing. “Would you...like to walk with me?”

_Yes, yes, yes and yes_ , my heart demanded. But I had to look cool, so I shrugged and said with a casual tone, “Sure.” He smiled again, and my fanboy heart was driving me insane, filling me with so much adrenaline I felt like I could strap on 3D Maneuver Gear and fly off into the night, shrieking with happiness.

We started our walk together. It wasn’t super cold out tonight, in fact, the weather was just right for a walk in the park.  Speaking of... “What park is this?” I asked him.

“Pixis Park,” he responded. I looked at him blankly. “You’ve never heard the tale of Commander Pixis?” He looked at me, stunned. I shook my head, confused. Eren looked ahead and suddenly smiled. “How convenient, now’s the perfect chance to tell you about him.”

I followed his gaze and my eyes widened at the sight of a huge statue, clearly in the center of the park. It’s a wonder I hadn’t noticed it earlier. On top of a large pedestal, a horse was reared up with two legs in the air, and a man sat on it’s back, one arm raised slightly near his head, looking behind him with determination on his face, mouth open in command. I gasped; he looked like the commander of the Garrison from my anime. Sheesh, now I was seeing the characters everywhere around me. This was really freaky.

“Anyway,” Eren started. “The story goes that Commander Pixis was a fantastic leader. He was kind, but responsible and headstrong. He was willing to hear people out. He led his Garrison into...” he paused suddenly, as did I. He had let something slip. “...I mean, he led his army into battles to protect the greater people. He would often make choices that would result in many lives being lost, but he focused on the main goal, and many times that led to ultimate victory.” He pointed now at the statue. “He was eventually killed in battle, but he was given a place of honor. See? The legend doesn’t say how he was killed, but the statue says how.” I looked at him, confused. “See how the horse has two legs in the air? That is indication that the warrior died in battle.” He looked pleased with himself. “At least, that’s what myth says.”

I was amazed. This man’s story was almost a perfect mirror of the anime. I looked at the face of metal, frozen in a determined yell. “That’s crazy.” I breathed. He smiled, clearly happy he had impressed me. “I thought you’d be interested.” He gently grabbed my arm to pull me away, and sparks flew, I swear. I jerked at the contact, and he quickly let go. “Um, I’m sorry, I just meant we should keep going...”

We walked through the other end of the park, sharing small talk about normal things. Then Eren made a turn and I saw the road. He pulled out his keys and clicked the lock, and a responding beep made him turn in their direction. I followed, my eyes widening at the sight of his car. He had a fricking Porsche.

As we walked to it, I noticed the trees around it, and I had to smirk as I saw that they were enormous oak trees. I couldn’t help myself. I said in quiet monotone, “Look at them, brat; at all these...”

“...big ass trees.” My eyes widened in horror as Eren and I finished the quote together. He turned to me, surprise evident in his face, along with a reserved excitement. “Um...Levi? I have a question...” I started to feel a cold sweat drip down my neck.

“Do you watch anime?”

_Shit._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Side note: That part about the horse statue is a real myth. I thought it was interesting.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren talks to Levi about the anime and we get some background on him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone had asked if I was going to write a chapter from Eren's perspective, so here it is! I had only been planning to have half the chapter be his perspective, but then I realized that I had typed up a ton about Eren, more than a normal chapter, so yeah. Levi's POV will be back next chapter!

I looked at the man standing in front of me with bold embarrassment. I really was having a hard time believing what I had just heard. Right as I had been thinking it, I had heard Levi say the exact quote I was about to say. I heard the first part, then finished it with him. As I had turned around, I had seen fear in his silvery eyes. It was weird, seeing the Corporal’s face fill with fear...

But this wasn’t the Corporal; this was Levi, the look-alike who I was going to be driving home. And I’m pretty sure I was about to make it a shit-ton more awkward.

“Um...Levi?” I asked. This was going to be awkward. “I have a question...” He was looking more and more nervous as I kept going. “Do you watch anime?” I had to assume that he did, since he had just quoted one of my favorite lines.

His face suddenly cleared and he looked up at me with a monotoned look. I shivered, and completely forgot for a moment that this wasn’t the Corporal in front of me. I felt like I was in the anime, and that the man was going to re-enact the court room scene on my ass.

“Why would you think something like that?” Levi’s voice was cold and emotionless. I shook myself and mentally told myself not to be afraid. He wasn’t the Corporal, though he shared the same face, hair, those sharp silver eyes, probably that same muscular chest and he probably would look as sexy as the fanart depicted without a shirt on...

I turned my face aside, feeling my blush, hoping that the lamp pole right above us would be kind and not illuminate my flushed cheeks. “Well, I-uh-well, that is...” I struggled to make my point go across. “That’s a quote from an anime.”

I clenched my hands together in slight anger. I was mad at myself. It was not just “an anime,” as I had just said. It was pretty much the only thing keeping me going, besides the hope that I would make it into Trost. I had poured my heart and soul into this anime, and when I discovered that I actually shipped the shifter and the Corporal, I dove into the water and swam after my ship wholeheartedly.

Then I had put my mind to work writing fanfictions. I had always been told, whether it was from teachers receiving an essay, or friends reading over them, that I was a really good writer. They would all suggest focusing my skills on something I loved, so that’s what I did.

 **Once in a Dark Moon** had started simply as I was looking out my window, wishing that I could go out on the roof like I used to, and dreaming about my OTP. Then I had seen the moon, and the words for the opening had just come to me. I had just suddenly gotten excited at the idea and had pulled up a Google Doc as quickly as I could before the inspiration left me. I pounded out words unknowingly all night, and had only paused when my alarm rang, telling me it was time for school.

To say it truthfully, I hadn’t been planning on posting the first chapter on my fanfiction website. I had been in the middle of writing another one, but I had just thrown it up without holding high hopes for it. When I opened my laptop the next morning over breakfast and looked at the stats for it, I had spit milk all over the counter, luckily missing my screen; it had almost as many hits as my other fanfiction overnight.

The comments had begged me to continue, so I had. I had spent my free time of second semester of my senior year typing my heart and soul into the fanfiction, and it had quickly risen in fame. I started to see it on my tumblr feed. I saw fan art start to arise, and people were positively gushing about it.

My only regret was that I hadn’t been able to share it with my friends. The few times I had tried to drag them into the anime, they had shrugged it off and had been completely uninterested. So I had to keep my fanboy nature to myself.

That was also partially why I had been looking forward to this summer, scoping out Trost University. I could write uninterrupted and unjudged. I could focus on getting into that school and also focus on my anime and OTP.

My first day had been spent moving items into my newly rented apartment. It was nicer than the average apartment, but getting it hadn’t been a problem. One of the few perks of having a father who is rich as all get out and doesn’t care what you do and will give you all the money you need to shut you up.

I had finished setting things up and lay on my bed in exhaustion. I had fallen asleep for a little while, then woken up an hour later. I had looked at my clock and decided it was time to christen a coffee shop for all my fanboy desires.

I had made it a rule that I had to have a coffee shop where I could go and relax. There was something just comforting about walking into a familiar, quiet setting and working on homework or typing updates for a few hours. I got into my Porsche, grimacing at the ever-present reminder of how lazy and rich my father was. I drove around my part of town for a while. I came across several Starbucks, but they had never really fit the bill.

I had driven home and then simply elected on walking around with my backpack to find a restaurant. I had passed a small alley and a soft glow illuminated from it, catching my attention. I walked down the dark alley, cautiously making sure I wasn’t about to get jumped by thugs or something. I made it through safely, and I saw a snug little shop. I walked to where the door was and saw that the entrance was super small, and only noticeable if you were looking for it. I saw the hand painted sign above the door in swirling letters: The 104th Cafe.

I peered inside. It didn’t look super busy, so I smiled and walked in. The first thing I felt was relaxation, and I knew I had found my place. It was a snug little coffee shop, and filled with mostly college students, like I was to be soon. I decided to park here for the night. I looked around. I wanted to be somewhere more private. I avoided a larger group of students and instead my gaze was drawn to a darker corner of the shop. There were only a few tables and chairs back there, and the only person I could see sitting in there was a dark head focused on their screen. That would do for me.

I walked past the person and accidently hit them with my backpack. I heard them hiss and I turned around, a blush coating my face and apologizing profusely...before freezing as I took in the face in front of me.

I thought I had stepped into the anime, or that we were having an extraterrestrial crisis and multiple dimensions were crossing over,  because I was greeted by the sight of...the Corporal. My eyes widened, taking in the eerily familiar curves of his face, the steel of his silver eyes, the hair that parted slightly off to the side, and the monotoned look I was receiving.

I was staring; I couldn’t help it. He was in front of me, and my mind wasn’t working. It had never helped that I had developed a significant fanboy crush on the Corporal, so seeing him before me was making my heart race as I looked into those deep silvery eyes that I had come to adore...

I didn’t realize he had been saying something until he said it a second time. “Be careful not to hit people with your bag when you walk.” I shook my head and apologized again before hurrying to the farthest table in the back, glancing back at him one more time. I settled into the chair and pulled out my laptop. I needed to get my mind off this.

I spent the next few hours typing up chapter 37 after I posted the 30th chapter. I always prepared chapters ahead of time; it made it easier for me, I guess. I hadn't realized how tired I still was until I felt myself nod off. I was woken up by someone lightly shaking me. I opened my eyes slightly and saw him again in front of me. I instantly snapped awake and my subconscious made my hand fly forward and slam my laptop lid shut. He looked annoyed. “Sheesh, I didn’t look at your stuff. Calm down.”

I relaxed a bit at that, but my groggy mind was still trying to process the man in front of me. It was scary seeing someone so familiar and then actually interacting with them. He started to turn away, saying something else, until my stupid mouth slipped up and blurted the first thing I had been thinking. “Corporal?”

I cursed at myself as he visibly tightened and turned around, looking unamused. “What did you just call me?” he asked, his voice full of annoyance and a tiny bit of malice. I blinked and tried to redeem myself. “Uh...I’m sorry. You just...remind me of someone.” I mentally kicked myself. Wow, I was screwing this up.

He didn’t seem to care though. “Huh. Well, I am certainly no ‘Corporal’, as you called me.” He walked over to me and held out his hand without a change in expression. “I’m Levi.” I grabbed his and smiled, trying to block out the sound of my heart exploding out of my chest. “I’m Eren.”

He was a bit kinder the rest of the time. We had talked about why I was there and he had ended up inviting me back to the coffee shop for future study days. I was glad that I had been accepted by this man, though he couldn’t be much older than me. He looked like he blended with the college crowd.

I met the teen who had been at the register, Armin, and then walked out into the night. I realized that Levi was walking with me, so we talked a bit. He walked me to my apartment. He looked a little surprised and pointed out that his was just a short walk away. I opened my door and said goodnight to him. I had crashed on my bed and fallen asleep happily.

This morning I had decided that today would be dedicated to TS-C. I read other fanfictions and looked at the new comments on mine. The rest of that time had been spent on tumblr.

I looked at the pictures of the two characters making out and my mind kept drifting to Levi. All this fanart was the same as him. It made it scarier, knowing that all this art could be put against Levi, a real, concrete person, and you could say it was all copied after him. I could picture how Levi looked by looking at the art. I could picture how the titan-shifter would take the Corporal’s-no Levi’s-hands and wrap them around his neck, kissing him slowly on the neck, eliciting a soft moan from that strong, deep, enticing voice of Levi’s...

Oh my god, I was doomed. I needed another distraction. My fanfiction became the perfect gateway. I continued where I left off and typed with reckless abandon.

I finally got a hold on reality and took a deep breath as if I had been underwater for a long time as I leaned away from my laptop. I was feeling hot and stuffy as I looked back over my work. I had finished up to chapter 39. I needed some air.

I decided to go to the park I had driven past several times. It had a giant awesome statue in the center of it, so I had researched it and felt very smart about it. I parked my Porsche next to some big oak trees and snuck into the park. I decided instantly that I liked it, because since it was midnight, nobody was out. Or so I thought.

I had been startled when I heard a voice from just beyond a patch of bushes. I crept around them and saw a familiar head of raven locks sitting on a bench. I recognized Levi’s voice and I caught the tail-end of their conversation.

“I got lost somewhere downtown and I need you to help get me out of here.” Oh, so he was lost. I thought that was interesting. The Corporal never got lost. I felt it was insanely easy to directly compare him to the Corporal, so that’s what I did.

“No, really, you need to help me.”  he hissed into the phone. He was clearly annoyed that he had gotten lost in the first place. He looked around, and I stepped back, hoping he wouldn’t see me yet. “I don’t see any.” What had he been looking for? Probably a road.

He snorted into the phone. “Hanji, it’s nearly midnight, no one is gonna be in a park at mid-” I finally decided to show myself. “Levi?” I asked cautiously. He spun around and looked shocked to see me. “What are you doing here?” he asked, lowering the phone from his head.

I thought quickly for an excuse. Remembering what I had actually been doing I responded, “I needed some fresh air because I’ve spent all night...um...typing a paper.” I hoped that he would take that answer. It sounded really weak to me.

He seemed to accept it, but there was still suspicion in his eyes. When I asked him in return, he made a lame excuse about reading an emotional piece, whatever that means. I told him that I was usually the only one here in the mornings, hoping he would never find out that I had moved here only yesterday.

I then invited him to take a walk with me, and I got to show him the statue. I felt proud that I had memorized this whole speech about the tale of Commander Pixis. Levi seemed amazed by it.

I had slipped up in the conversation, though. I had said that he had brought in his Garrison. Ugh, too much interaction with anime characters in real life was going to give me a headache.

I had turned to go in the direction of my car, and saw Levi still standing by the statue. I grabbed his arm  innocently, and I felt something. Like a twinge in my heart. I blushed as he shook his arm from my grasp, and I stuttered. I hated how he could do that to me so easily.

I had made it to my car without further embarrassment, but now I was the cause of things falling apart from the tension.

Levi crossed his arm and looked at me critically. “So, what if it is?”

I was stunned at his straightforwardness. “So, you DO watch anime? Specifically...” I swallowed as I gathered my courage, “...War on Giants?”

He looked me straight in the eye, and I felt intimidated. I could see the Corporal, Humanity’s Strongest, peering at me, deciding what to do with me, but I couldn’t help but look into those eyes with admiration and start to melt under the steely gaze of silver...

“Yes.” My eyes widened and I looked at Levi as a whole again. Yes? He did? He watched War on Giants too?

“Oh my god,” I whispered, “I love that show.” Levi looked at me and I might’ve caught the emotion that he already knew, but I shook that off in my rising excitement. “Have you seen the whole thing?”

“Yes,” he responded again.” I have. And I love the show too, dammit.” He suddenly looked surprised, as if he hadn’t meant to let that last part slip.

I was getting super excited. Levi, the Corporal’s identical, watched it! Argh, I wanted to fall down in a ball and giggle from happiness. But I couldn’t. “Um...what do you think of the characters?” I asked lamely. I couldn’t think of anything else to say.

“The Corporal is the best.” Ah, I thought, looking at him. “I agree.”

“But their characters are hard to write out.” He said, then his eyes widened and he took a step back in mortification as my jaw dropped.

“You...you write fanfictions about War on Giants?” I couldn’t believe it. Levi was just like me! I had to know. I took a step towards him. “What are they about? Are they about the titan shifter alone, or are they about a couple...do you write about your OTP?”

I realized I had been babbling. I shut my mouth and looked down in embarrassment. Who was I to ask? Hell, I didn’t know if he had an OTP, much less if he shipped anyone in the anime.

“Yeah,” he said quietly. My head shot up and I stared at him. Then I had a thought. “What’s your username? I might know some of what you’ve written.”

He looked at me and shook his head. “No, you wouldn’t. I’m pretty low on the scale of popularity.” He gave me a knowing glance and I shivered. It was almost like he knew how high up I was on that scale. But I still wanted to know. “C’mon, please tell me!”

Levi sighed and finally relented. He said quietly, and in a slightly embarrassed tone, “It’s _thecorporalsbrat_.”

My heart stopped beating, I swear. My jaw dropped open, but I didn’t notice it, because I was just staring at Levi. _No...way..._

Levi was looking at me with slight surprise. “What?” he asked. I couldn’t respond for a bit. I finally was able to regain my voice. “The- _thecorporalsbrat_? _You’re...thecorporalsbrat_?”

He was starting to look nervous. “Yeah, so?” I gathered my feelings and threw them out of my mouth without thinking anything through.

“I use your works as ideas for my fanfiction! Your fics have given me motivation for most of my current work!”

Levi completely froze. He looked at me with such a stunned expression he could have just seen the shifter block up the wall with the giant rock in person and it would have been the same. He opened his mouth, then closed it, then opened it and said in a strange voice,

“What?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had also had that idea before, so I just rolled with it. How cute, they're fanboys of eachother. :)


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi talks with Eren about fanfictions and gets to visit Eren's apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHH I've almost gone a whole day and a half without updating! I had nearly no motivation to write most of today, so I sincerely apologize! This chapter is back to Levi's perspective.

“What?”

I stared at Eren with complete disbelief at what he had just said to me. In all honesty, I couldn’t process what he had said.

He, Eren, the writer of probably the most famous TS-C fanfiction in the entire fandom, the one who looked exactly like the shifter, knew about my writing. And not only knew about it, but used it as motivation for parts of **Once in a Dark Moon**.

I thought I was going to faint. Then it passed and I was left staring into the truth of what he had just told me.

“What?” I said again, not being able to form more than one word sentences right now. He was looking at me with pure adoration on his face. He was looking at me the way I should have been looking at him. I couldn’t understand that he liked my work.

I finally spoke a longer sentence. “That’s not true, because if you had, I would have seen your name under the kudos!” That was kind of stretching it, as I never really looked at the usernames of the people who gave kudos, and only at the number I had gotten.

He shook his head, his excitement evident in his voice. “No, I’m serious! I’ve been looking at your work since I first got an account.” He suddenly looked at me expectantly. “By the way, pardon me for asking, but when are we getting Chapter 7?”

That hit me like a metal chair to the face. There was the proof. He really did read my fanfictions. Holy shit.

“Um...” I was speechless. I couldn’t believe it. I could suddenly feel the fanboy inside me wake up and see the feast of feels that was in front of him to consume. I felt myself becoming happier and happier in a matter of seconds, and I knew that if I didn’t shut my heart down I would physically drop to the ground and melt into a puddle of feels that were sure to chase him off.

“I’ve been...” I struggled to talk to him about MY fanfictions when all I wanted was to gush to him about his. “...struggling with what to write in it.”

He looked positively giddy as he said, “Well, maybe I can help! Maybe we could talk about ideas while I drive you home.”

I had started physically shaking. Eren, this amazing and dramatic writer, was going to help me with ideas for my fanfiction. It was like a wish come true. I took a deep breath to quell my excitement. “Alright.” He grinned happily at me and got into the driver’s side of the car. I walked over to the passenger’s side and got inside, marveling at the interior.

“How did you get such a nice car if you’re only going to be a freshman?” I asked in wonder. I didn’t have enough money in my entire savings to buy a car like this. Eren tensed up at the wheel and said in a constricted voice, “It’s from my dad.” I got the hint from his tone that I shouldn’t bring it up again. I was ok with that.

“Ok, so...” He took a deep breath and the excitement returned to his voice. “What ideas do you have for the seventh chapter?”

We chatted about ideas the entire ride, which took about 20 minutes but felt like only five because of how excited we both were, pouring out little scenes and talking about plot. By the time we were driving through familiar streets, I had an entire mental sketch about what my next chapter would be about.

We were getting to the corner by his place, and as we pulled up, I felt a little bit upset. I wanted to talk more to Eren. I wanted us to come up with ideas together and to update sitting next to each other. I wanted to type up a scene between the shifter and the Corporal and then imagine Eren doing all of those things with me, and then...nope, going to stop that train of thought right now.

I could tell from his face that he was sad that we were back as well. He turned off the car and we sat there for a moment. Then I sighed and started to get out of the car. “Thanks, Eren, for the ride. I’ll see you at the cafe soon, right?” He looked at me and I noticed his eyes were slightly blurred. Then he blinked and they cleared. “Oh, yeah, definitely.”

I nodded and was about to close the door when I heard him blurt, “Would you like to come inside for a while?” I froze, my hand still on the door. Had I heard what I just thought I did? “I mean, like for a cup of coffee or something!” Embarrassment was heavily laced in his voice, and I knew that he had to be blushing in that same cute way that mirrored all the fan art.

“Yeah, sure.” I shut the door just as his shot open with enough force to nearly break it. He leaped out of the car and slammed it shut, then started to race away from me, towards the door, before he realized that I was still back by the car. He stopped abruptly, turned and jogged back, and the scene was so funny I had to choke back a laugh.

“Um, sorry about that.” He blushed and started walking me towards the door. “I’m not used to bringing people up to my apartment.” I nodded and walked with him up the stairs. We walked all the way to the top floor, and I started to wonder about how rich he really was to have an apartment on the top. We got to a room and he pulled out a key. He unlocked the door and I walked after him into a dark room. He fumbled with a light switch and finally turned it on. I quietly gasped at the sight.

His apartment was huge. The walls were a deep maroon, which normally would have looked strange but it worked here. There were several rooms. The kitchen was off to the side behind a wall, and I could see stainless steel everything in it. In front of us was the living room, which boasted a giant comfy looking leather sofa and several plumped leather chairs to go with it, which were all sitting around a glass table and were all facing the giant flat-screen TV that took up the majority of that wall.  Past that and off to the side, I could see part of what looked like a sun room, with half of the ceiling made of glass and slanted sideways. There were several more comfy chairs as well as some beanbag ones, and a smaller brown couch facing the window. When I walked forwards, I saw that there was another hallway, down which were lined several closed doors, probably the bathroom, maybe a closet or two, and then most likely his bedroom. His entire apartment looked like someone had taken a small luxury house and put it on top of an apartment complex.

I stood in the middle of his plush-carpeted floor and gaped all around me. Eren had brushed past me and was in the kitchen brewing some coffee from a silver coffee maker. I shook my head and walked over to him in the kitchen.

“Your apartment is...” I couldn’t speak because I was still in awe. He looked at me and chuckled. “One of the benefits of having a rich ass dad, huh?” I could hear a slight sour note in the comment though, so I figured it wasn’t the best time to keep asking. “You can sit on the couch or something. I’ll have the coffee ready in a minute.”

I stumbled over to his couch and sat on it, relaxing into it as it neatly folded around me. I sat there and could only respond to Eren’s comments about what I wanted in my coffee. He finally came over to me and set down my drink in a fancy looking mug. I was startled to see that there was foam on the top. I looked at him in surprise. He looked smug and responded, “I have a frother.” Shit, this guy had everything.

We sat in comfortable silence, sipping our drinks before he finally looked at me and said, “So, um, I was wondering if you could look over my most recent few chapters and see if I should change anything?”

I jerked upright and stared at him. What? He wanted me to what?

“I want you to read over my most recent chapters and see if they’re good...?” He looked a bit scared, but hopeful. I had apparently spoken out loud.

Not for the first time that night, I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Eren wanted me to help edit his writing? I could never do something like that! His writing was flawless, so full of passion and happiness and argh! I could never. But my lips wouldn’t move, save for opening and closing slightly.

He takes it as me saying yes. “Here, I’ll get my laptop.” He scurried off to his room, practically in a blur as he runs. He returns so fast and pounds out his password (good to see he keeps one thing password protected) and thrusts the laptop to me. I stare down at the screen and gulp. I look up at him, and immediately which I hadn’t. His face is uplifted and he looked so adorably hopeful I want to read it all again, pretend that I didn’t know who he was. But I couldn’t do that.

I looked at where he had scrolled up to, which was the beginning of chapter 35, so I scrolled down to where chapter 37 was, but was happy to see that there was more written, at least two chapters. I had started to read chapter 38 when Eren noticed and said, “No wait, that’s not where I wanted you to read, yet. I want to see what you thought of this-”

“Eren,” I said softly, heart filling with dread at what I was about to say, “It’s good.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, still scrolling up to chapter 35. “You haven’t even read it yet!”

“Yes I have.” The words were out before I could lose my courage.

His fingers froze and he looked up at me. “What?” I looked into his gorgeous eyes and nearly failed at my next words. But they still came out.

“Eren, I’ve already read chapters 35 through 37. I looked at them after I sent them to myself at the coffee shop yesterday.”

“I know who you are.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I. am. SO. sorry! Please don't rip your hearts out!  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> 
> Update for August 10th:  
> Readers, I am so sorry! This is what happens when I'm sick...plus I'm feeling exactly like Levi in the first chapter. I don't know what to write for Chapter 7. I need an epiphany. Either way, the next chapter will be up by either late tonight or sometime tomorrow afternoon. I'm so sorry this is taking so long!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi spends some quality time at Eren's apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GAAAHHHH I AM SO SORRY FOR THE LATE UPDATE!!! I was sick, and when I wasn't sick I was watching this one video a thousand times.  
> Wow, I'm weird.  
> Also, at the very end is a little of Eren's perspective.

 

As soon as my confession was out of my mouth I looked away from him and stared at my feet. I felt my heart beating painfully against my ribs and wanted to melt into the floor and never return to a solid state.

He was going to never talk to me ever again. He was going to see me only for the creepy fanboy that I was who would only fawn over him and his work and not appreciate him as a person and fellow fan of the anime. We could never have that friendly relationship we had just been sharing minutes ago, and it was all my fault.

It was dead silent. Literally, even the fridge wasn’t humming. It all served to make the only sound my pulse pounding in my ears. Then I heard a slight intake of breath and waited for the command to get out of his apartment.

“You...you do? You know about me?” I slowly turned to face him, expecting to see broken betrayal on his face.

I wasn’t expecting happiness and light embarrassment to be there.

I took in his face and it gave me the courage to give a slightly snarky comment. “Well, yeah. I mean, who in our army of TS-C shippers hasn’t?” He looked down at the floor and smiled. “Well, yeah, I know I’m really high up there on the stats. It kinda makes me embarrassed. And worried too! Like, what if I type one wrong paragraph, and then people start to hate everything and won’t read it anymore?”

I was stunned. This wasn’t how I thought he was going to react. “But,” the words were leaving my mouth before I could think them through, “I looked ahead. I sent myself your work! Aren’t you mad at me?”

Eren looked back up at me with such a happy expression that it went straight into my heart and I felt my entire conscious focus on his breathtaking eyes. I’ll say it now; I’ve always been a sucker for eyes, which is partly why I had absolutely loved the titan-shifter’s character. It had always taken my breath away, seeing them in the anime, and now here they were, those same glorious Caribbean orbs that positively glowed. I could melt.

“Levi, I’m a little offended, but I would’ve been madder if it wasn’t YOU who had looked ahead.”

I could fly on wings, I was so happy and relieved. I stared at his eyes, which clearly reflected his soul, just as bright and beautiful. I opened my mouth to say something, anything, I didn’t care I was too relieved.

But then his phone rang.

Eren looked annoyed and pulled it out of his pocket. He took one glance at the screen and his face hardened. I knew one thing for sure; whoever was calling wasn’t someone that he liked very much.

He gave me a look that told me to wait a moment. Then he swiped at the screen with almost a vicious rub and held up the phone to his ear. “What do you want?”

I couldn’t hear the conversation, but I didn’t need to hear it, because Eren seemed to purposely explain to me everything that was happening in the way he responded. “Yes, Dad, I’m doing fine out here...yes I’ve met new people...no I haven’t crashed the car, I’m not a brand new driver...either way it wouldn’t be a problem, I’d just have to ask you for another Porsche and I’d get it. It’s just with how large your big-ass bank account is, buying me a simple Porsche wouldn’t be any problem.” I was staring at him, wide-eyed at how casually he was telling me that his dad was really bringing in a shit-ton of money.

“Yeah, well not that I don’t enjoy your monthly check-ups, but I’m busy, so I’ll have to cut us short tonight...yes, so I’ll talk to you in a month. Goodbye...” he hung up and finished his sentence, “...you son of a bitch.”

I wasn’t really sure how to respond to what had just happened. I had just gotten a taste into Eren’s personal life, and clearly it was a bit messed up. Maybe just a bit.

He looked at me, annoyance still clouding his face, and I looked back. We just sat there and looked at each other, and in the end, it didn’t matter, because I had started staring at him again. Suddenly it hit me that _he was staring back_. His eyes were traveling across my face, examining my ears and sliding down my jawbone, then looking at my neck with an almost appreciatory look. He was also blushing slightly, and I started blushing when I had a thought;

_Was Eren checking me out?_

I swallowed, and then his eyes darted back up to mine, and embarrassment covered his face and ears with a deep red. We stared at each other for another minute, both blushing (although me a lot lighter than him), and it started to get awkward. We both turned away at nearly the same time, and for a moment there was awkward silence. Then...

“Do you want to play Outlast?”

I looked back at Eren, and he looked back at me, no less embarrassed, and clearly trying to make the situation less awkward. “What?”

“You, know, the game, Outlast?” I shook my head. “You’ve never heard of it?” Another shake. “Woah, do you even play Xbox?”

Um...now this was getting awkward for me. I had an Xbox back home, but I hadn’t been allowed to bring it to college with me. Only a couple of my guy friends had an Xbox, so it had always been a treat when I got to go over to another dorm room (ah, the days of dorms; those dark days of uncleanliness before we were allowed to rent apartments) and play whatever game was available. Most of the time it had been GTA or Call of Duty. Several times, in secret, when it had been early in the morning and none of us were thinking straight, we even played Kinectimals on the only Xbox 360. I still remember us waving our arms around and laughing like it was the funniest thing as we trained our baby animals at 2:30 in the morning. I had always had the panther, but I couldn’t tell anyone about that game, or we’d all be done for and our man-cards would be gone.

“I’ve played it a bit since I got to college, so I know how to play, but I’ve never heard of Outlast.” He shot me a look that was excitement mixed with...wait, was he smirking? Why was he smirking?

“Yep, we’re definitely playing. You’re gonna start, because you’ve never played before. I’ll help a little if you need it.” Yeah, he was smirking alright. He grabbed his controllers and popped in the game. As soon as I saw the title screen, I knew this was going to be new.

In case you don’t know, Outlast is a horror game. It’s one of those brain-numbing physiologically impairing games that leave you either with wet pants and a sore throat, or a long night questioning your mental stability and a sore throat. Outlast is just full of those little moments where you think you’re safe, and then boom, jumpscare.

I like to think of myself as a mature, calm, and well-minded senior in college, but 20 minutes into the game had me acting as if I had sold my soul to the devil and now I knew his hellhounds were coming after me. The dead, bloodied bodies that were everywhere had already creeped me out before I saw my first creature, and from then on it was all manly screeches of horror and nearly falling off the couch from jumping so high. Every corner I turned and let out a little squeak, hoping that nothing would be there. My first time seeing one of the things (I still don’t know what they are) I froze in terror before I could get to a closet and hide, and it killed me so fast and terrifying that I’m pretty sure that people on the ground floor heard my scream.

Eren would have been getting a kick out of the whole thing, except when he wasn’t busy laughing at my reactions he was screaming in fright too.

We played for at least an hour and a half before I started to feel really tired, and I knew it was time for me to go. I sighed and paused the game. “Eren, it’s nearly 3 in the morning. We should both be sleeping. I should go.”

He looked a bit crestfallen as he saved our progress and put down the controller. He got up and turned off the Xbox, then turned to me. “Yeah. Well, this was really fun.” He seemed to be trying to not sound disappointed. I looked at him and knew his disappointment was mirrored on my own face. I really didn’t want to leave, and I hadn't had this much fun with someone in at least a month, maybe more. I yawned and commented sleepily, “God, I feel like if I tried walking home I’d fall down and sleep in the middle of the street.”

Eren’s tired eyes suddenly lit up with an idea, and he turned to me. “You could stay here for tonight.” I arched my eyebrows as he fumbled with his next words. “I mean-you just said you were super tired, so if you wanted to, you could sleep on my couch or something. Unless you have somewhere to be tomorrow and you need to be home...” I weakly shook my head. Right now, I was too tired to really think out what he had said, so the idea of a place to sleep right now sounded good. I nodded and mumbled, “I’ll take the couch.”

He nodded back and walked to one of the closets and retrieved bedding. I stumbled over as he was setting up, and he had just put on the last blanket when I collapsed. I barely heard him mumble, “Shit, there’s no pillows left...hey Levi? Are you alright with using one of my pillows?”

Forget titan-shifter; Eren was exactly like the blond-haired angel. “Yeah, that’s fine...” I drawled out, and as I felt my eyes flutter shut I felt delicate fingers lift my head and insert the fluffiest of all pillows. I swear, that thing was made of angel wings.  

I was dead to the world in seconds.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

I looked down at Levi through tired eyes and smiled as I was finally able to stare in peace. His handsome features were relaxed in the same was fanart depicted, and seeing him here really was a work of something...heaven maybe? Hello, God?

I looked again at the details I had only been able to brush over before he had discovered me. I dared to reach out with my fingertips and lightly, oh so lightly, brush down the side of his face, over the rim of his ear, then down his jaw and then down his finely-sculpted neck. I stopped on his pulse, and it sent a rush to my heart and then...we were the same. Our rhythms were at matching paces, and it was so magical and I wanted to lean down and kiss the spot that was connecting us at the same...

Wait, nevermind, my heart was definitely going about ten times faster than his right now.  I needed to calm down before I got an adrenaline rush and stayed up for another few hours. I brushed my fingers over his life’s beat one more time and stood. I marveled at how the tiny strip of moonlight from the mostly closed blinds fell across his cheek, like a sword with a diagonal tip.

I sighed and took in a final deep look before turning and walking down my hallway to my new room. Hah, here I was, new to this apartment, and it was already being shared with someone...

No, it was just for tonight. I felt sadness at that, but I wasn’t entirely sure why. I pulled up my covers and lay back against my pillows. Something felt off, but I was falling into deep sleep. It wasn’t until a split instant before I fell asleep that I realized why my bed felt so weird tonight;

I had given my best and most comfy pillow to Levi.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully this is ok! Again, sorry for the late update! I'll try to post chapters in between 2 days from now on. And also, thanks to Pewdiepie and his Outlast gameplay...and Smosh with Kinectimals.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning life of Levi at Eren's apartment...and a dream.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry! I had meant to stay up and post this last night, but my mom stole my laptop. :( Either way, here it is now!

****

   We held hands as we walked down the street together towards our apartment. He said something funny, and I laughed at it, feeling more than comfortable standing by his side and holding on to him. He opened the door for me, and I joked about him being the proper gentlemen. We walked upstairs and opened his apartment door. We went to his room and started getting ready for bed, making teasing touches the entire time. We switched turns for the shower, and as I walked past him he pinched me on the butt. I swatted his hand away and gave him a suggestive smirk.

    We finally were ready for bed, and we lay down on his mattress and pulled the covers close. I curled into his chest with my back, perfectly content to be the little spoon. He looped his arm over me and around my waist. We were silent for about a minute before he grunted. “Not comfortable, turn around.” I smiled and obliged, coming face-to-face with him. He smiled and said, “Levi, seriously, you’re beautiful.” He reached out his hand and gently stroked my face. I smiled softly and leaned into the touch. He suddenly grabbed my face gently and locked eyes.

    I was instantly lost on swirling Caribbean seas, floating in the oceans of green and blue. I could see him staring back, then a light blush on his face told me what he wanted to do. He pulled my head close and gave me a sweet kiss. I sighed into it and looped an arm around his neck. He kissed me again, and I replied, returning it. Then we were lip-locked, and arms were thrown tightly around each other. He moved from my lips to my face and kissed it, not quite sucking, and I let out a satisfied sigh. Then he ran his tongue up my cheek, and I shivered with the feeling. He did it again, and then I was feeling slightly uncomfortable. I moved my face to the side, but he followed me and licked me again. I opened my mouth to protest...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My eyes flew open and I stared up at the ceiling. What? I was struggling to remember where I was. Then something shifted next to me and I nearly had a heart attack. Wait, was Eren sleeping next to me? I was still staring at the ceiling when a tongue licked up my cheek again. I turned my head and was met with a big, black, wet nose.

    I screamed in panic and pushed myself away, falling off Eren’s couch as I did so. I couldn’t really see through the bedding  what it was, but I was still scared, so I just kept screaming. I heard a door slam and Eren came running out, clothed in red plaid pajama pants and a black t-shirt. “Levi, what’s wrong?” He rushed over to me and knelt down to my position on the floor.

    “S-something licked me!” I replied, voice hoarse from morning screaming. Note to self, it hurts. Don’t scream directly after waking up. It’s a pain in the ass all day. He looked at the couch and...

    ...started laughing. I glared at him. He stilled his laughter before saying, “I’m so sorry that Gunther is bothering you.” He got up and walked over to the pile of sheets and blankets, which was shifting now because of whatever was in my previous location. He reached in and scratched at something before moving the sheets and revealing a large black lab. The dog came out of the sheets, tail wagging ferociously. Then it noticed me and leaped over the pile now on the floor and attacked me, licking my face as if there was peanut butter on it. I had just let myself fall over from the shock of being attacked, and now was trying to swat the dog away.

    Eren wasn’t helping. He was laughing. I glared at him in between dog licks and was finally able to push it away long enough to jump up. I jumped over to Eren and hid behind him. The dog followed me. I looked pointedly at Eren and he leaned down and guided the black ball of energy to one of the rooms and put him inside. “Gunther gets excited when he meets new people.”

    I sighed, then shivered, becoming conscious of the copious amount of dog spit on my face. I shot Eren a look, and he understood. “Here, the bathroom’s this way.” He led me to the first doorway on the left. He opened the door and I was greeted by more maroon and everything porcelain. He opened a drawer in the vanity and pulled out a washcloth. “Here, you can wash up. I’ll make something for breakfast. Omelets?”

    I nodded and he left, leaving me to look at myself in the mirror. I looked at my wrinkled clothes from yesterday in disgust. I hadn’t even brushed my teeth, so my breath had to smell awful. And to top it all, my face was literally shining with dog saliva. I shivered with the feeling of being so dirty. I ran the water for a moment, letting it warm up, then wet the washcloth and rubbed my face gently. The feeling reminded me of my dream, and I remembered it all with crystal clarity. There was no doubt that it had been Eren in the dream, and I looked into the mirror and was met with my blushing face.

This made me a bit mad, because normally it took a lot to make me blush. But now that I thought about it, ever since I had met Eren I had been blushing a lot. It was honestly terrifying.

I quickly finished cleaning my face. I leaned out the door and called out, “Hey, Eren? Do you have an extra toothbrush?” He called back, “Why bother? You’ll be eating breakfast in a moment anyway. You can wait until then, right?” I narrowed my eyes but was able to see his logic. I left the bathroom and felt myself perk up at the smell. It smelled really good. I walked towards the kitchen and saw Eren flip over an omelet with a practiced twist of his wrist. In truth, I was feeling a bit scared to be near him after my dream last night.

He turned to me and smiled. His eyes were already pulling me in. I had to shake my head to snap out of it. Since when did I become so weak to him? He bumped me with a plate that had an omelet on it. I took it and walked to the table surrounded by couches. I sat down on one of the chairs and waited for him to join me, although I was having trouble trying to distance myself from the amazing smell that was coming from my plate. He finally sat down and placed some tea in front of him. He looked at me for a moment, then asked, “What are you waiting for, my blessing? Go ahead.” I had started eating before he finished the sentence and oh, if it wasn’t the best god damn omelet I had ever had.

We ate in silence for a few minutes, giving small talk. He told me more about Gunther and I recapped for him what happened (leaving out the dream part). He laughed at the story, and I couldn’t help but love his laugh. It somehow had a rich sound to it, and it made me want to make him laugh again.

I finished first and sat back, letting my full stomach relax. I needed to have him cook more for me. I froze at the sudden mental image of him placing an omelet in front of me and kissing me on the cheek. I looked away to hide my embarrassed face. He was still focused on his plate, so I was safe. To distract myself, I asked him, “Will you get me that damn toothbrush now?” He looked up and smiled before walking me to the bathroom again and pulling out a brand new toothbrush and toothpaste bottle. He left me and I brushed my teeth vigorously.

When I had finished, I walked out into the living room, toothbrush in hand. “Keep it, it has your spit on it,” Eren told me, sitting down on the couch. I nodded. We looked at each other, and my heart sunk as I spoke. “Well, I should probably get home. I have stuff I need to get done today.” He sighed and nodded. “Yeah.”

We both didn’t look at each other in the awkward silence that followed. Then he stood and walked me to the door. I opened the door and turned to him. “We should do this again sometime soon.” He brightened up and smiled. “Definitely.” I looked at him with a sudden thought. “You’ll show up at the 104th soon, right?” He smiled wider and nodded. I breathed out a breath I hadn’t realized I had been holding. “Awesome.” I looked at the floor before looking back up at Eren. “Well, thanks for everything last night.” As I turned, he said, “You mean this morning, right?” I turned around to see an impish grin plastered on his face. I gave him a look and sighed, but with a bit of amusement. “Yeah, that.” I turned towards the stairs and started to walk down them. I noticed that I didn’t hear his door shut until I was beyond his view.

I walked outside and started my walk back to my own apartment. I shoved my hands into my pockets and thought about Eren. I thought about his place and how much fun we had had in the early morning hours of today. I thought of how I had crashed on his couch without a second thought. I thought of my dream of being with Eren, as his boyfriend. I nearly tripped and fell off the sidewalk at that point. I thought of how he had let me take his spare items like the toothbrush that was still in my hand. And I thought of how sad he had looked as I left.

I wasn’t really thinking about anything besides Eren as I walked, so my subconscious had done everything for me. When I took a break from my Eren thoughts to go back to reality, I had my hand on my door knob and was turning it. I stepped into my apartment and was instantly struck by how small it was. The white walls  looked strange in comparison to Eren’s maroon ones.

Ugh, I was missing him already. But right now, I had to think about other things, like how disgusting I was.

I took a shower and changed my clothes, putting the dirty ones in the hamper. My phone had died over at Eren’s place, so I was charging it. I waited until it was at about 50% before picking it up and opening it. My eyes widened and then I groaned at all the missed calls I had. I was assuming they were all from Hanji.

I checked them. Yep, all Hanji, and all at around 7 this morning. It was 8:53 now. I decided to call her back, just to let her know I was alive and not dead in that park. I hit the return call button and put the phone to my ear, wondering if it would be after the first ring of the second ring that she would answer.

It was the first ring. “LEVI! OHMYGODAREYOUOK?” “Yeah, Hanji I’m fine,” I grumbled into the phone, which was now being held a little ways away from my face so I didn’t go deaf. “You just hung up on me and then didn’t reply to me at all! I thought you had been taken by the government or something.”

“No Hanji, I just spent the night with my friend.” Wrong thing to say. Hanji was silent, and I stopped what I was doing, wanting to know what exactly I had said to make her quiet. It had to be catastrophic if she was silent on a phone call.

“LEVI! You never told me you liked guys!” Wait, what? I liked guys? Since when? And why did Hanji assume that...oh. “Hanji...”

She wasn’t listening. “Did you spoon afterwards? Who topped? Was he good? Who caved in first? Did he kick you out as soon as you woke up? Was he attractive enough for you? Did he-”

“Hanji!” I yelled into the phone. “I didn’t sleep with him!”  “You didn’t? Aww, that’s no fun!” I growled into the phone despite my red face. “Hanji, he’s a friend, and a new one at that. I’m not going to sleep with him anytime soon...or ever.”

“Hah, well we’ll see. Maybe you finally are developing a sexual preference.” I choked into the phone. Hanji knew better than anyone that I never really found people to be attractive, so she had made it her mission to point out “attractive people” everywhere. She had determined that i still hadn’t discovered my sexual preferences yet.

“Hanji, I’m not into guys!” Well, now that I thought about it...maybe I was into Eren a bit...oh god.

“Well, suit yourself. So how was this sleepover?” I could almost hear her leaning forward, phone pressed to her ear, ready for the juicy details. “It was fine. He invited me to go up to his apartment for a cup of coffee after he drove me home, so I accepted, and then we played Xbox for a while until it was nearly 3 this morning and I was too tired to move.”

“What about this morning? Or, later this morning. Did he kick you out?” I could hear a bit of concern in her voice, and that was the last thing I needed; for Hanji to be concerned about me. “No, in fact he made me breakfast and gave me my own toothbrush since I didn’t have one.” “Ooh, he gave you something that relates to cleaning? I think we have found your sexual preference, Levi.” I heard her snigger over the phone.

“Ugh, Hanji.” I rubbed my eyes and looked out my window where I had walked part way into the conversation. “So, are you going to see him again? Did you get his number?” My eyes widened as I realized that I had failed to get that important piece. “Um...no?”

“Levi! You can’t spend the night at someone’s house and not get their number! Go back over there and get it from him!” I was feeling disappointed in myself. I can’t believe that I had forgotten to get Eren’s number! Then I remembered what he had said. “Hanji, I’ll probably see him soon anyway. He’s started to go to the 104th.” I wondered if I should’ve given her this information. She’ll probably try to stalk him now.

“Ooh, yay! A coffee buddy! Well, I wanna meet him! Maybe we can rub off on him and bring him to the ‘dark side’, if you know what I mean.” I did know what she meant, and I let a smirk creep onto my face, because she doesn’t know that Eren has already joined the dark side, and for us, he might just be the emperor.

“Yeah, maybe,” I told her. “Ok, now I have things to do, so I’ll talk to you later.” “Okkie doke!” I hung up and plugged my phone back in. I thought to myself, what did I have to do today? Oh, that’s right.

I needed to update my fanfiction.

 ******  
  
**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed to have someone freak out about the whole thing, and Hanji is always good at that.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Levi updates his chapter, he gets a surprise he couldn't never believed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, I feel like in this story I'm writing three fan fictions, because I have this one and then parts from both Eren's and now Levi's. Oh, three in one.  
> Also, I'm so sorry! I'm leaving for a vacation early tomorrow, and I won't be able to update until I get back because there will be no wifi! I don't want to have to wait until next Tuesday! But we'll all have to wait. I'm sorry!

I tapped at my keyboard without hitting any of the keys, re-reading over my work. After my ideas from Eren, I had typed up the next chapter for updating, my writer’s block gone. Eren had given me so much motivation, I had enough material for several more chapters. I looked at my most recent paragraphs.

_The shifter pressed his cheek against the Corporal’s chest, humming at the sound of his heartbeat. It was strong, calm, and it beat for him. The Corporal had lowered his hand to the teen’s head and had started to brush through it, almost in a motherly way. The other hand was being snaked around the shifter and pressed to his heart so that he rested comfortably in the arms of his captain._

_They were content to be here, on the roof of the castle, in a hidden place under the stars, away from the prying of eyes and the responsibilities that they had to live up to. Here, they could be as personal as they wanted, and no one would know. They were both aware of that knowledge, and it made their hearts beat faster at the thought of what they could do together, away from the rest of the world, where it was just them in the dark._

_The Corporal moved first. While the shifter lay with his head pressed to the man’s chest and eyes closed, he had felt the teen’s heartbeat and knew it was time to do something about it. He was running his hand down the teen’s chest, and as he brushed down the sensitive skin around the navel the younger shivered with the feeling. It made the Corporal's heart go to super speeds. He could feel the heat rising inside him, a fire that had been there since the shifter became a bigger figure in his life, and there were moments when the fire built up, as if someone was throwing fuel into it. Right now was one of those times._

__

I took a deep breath and knew it was time. I had personally never written smut before, but here, I had just written in the perfect opportunity. I wondered what they should do. I had plenty of knowledge about how this was supposed to work because of all the other smut fics I’d read. I let those be my basis and typed.

I was distracted by the sound of my phone vibrating from a text. I ignored it, but it brought me back to reality. I looked at my screen and was surprised to see several new pages. Did I write these? I didn’t really remember. I had to re-read over them anyway, so why not?

And oh... _oh_. Well, holy shit, I didn’t know that I could just belt out a long heated line of smut like that. The stuff that I had typed was descriptive in both the physical sense and the emotional sense. People could read this and get a complete mental image of what they were both doing and feeling the entire time.

I was a bit stunned that I had actually written that much “deep” smut for my first time...ha, first time, that makes it sound like I’m losing my virginity.

Yes, I was still a virgin. Hanji bothered me to no end about it. I wasn’t really waiting for someone after college, in fact I wasn’t really saving myself for anyone. I just never really felt a strong attraction towards anybody. Hell, I never really had felt attracted to anyone before...

...except Eren.

I froze at that thought. Was I attracted to Eren? I mean, just because I had loved the shifter’s character before him, and then the fact that he was kind, and he kept his place clean, and the fact that he was a famous TS-C writer, and that he admired my work, and he had a pretty sweet body the times I’d actually took to look at it, and, his amazing, beautiful eyes that kept on swallowing my entire being up, and...

...oh my god. What was happening to me?

I blinked away the thoughts of Eren that kept on continuing to make me blush (god, even thinking about his smile is making me blush) and focused again on the ending of the chapter. I decided that they would help each other clean up, but mostly the Corporal, of course. They they would put their clothes back on and walk back to the main group. I ended with this paragraph;

_As they walked into the mess hall, people looked up. The shifter’s friends looked worried, probably assuming that the teen had gotten in trouble for something. The Corporal’s group looked only slightly worried, and were alright with letting it slide. The two strengths for humanity gave each other a long look. They had crossed the boundaries; they were undoubtedly lovers now. The titan-shifter looked into the eyes of his Corporal, and the older man felt himself being swept up in those amazing blue-green orbs, floating away, and he wanted nothing more than to hold this creature from heaven close to him and never let go. But he couldn’t; not here. So, in the moment before they turned to go their separate ways for the night, the Corporal gave his charge a smile, and that made the shifter buzz with the hidden knowledge that he had, and the promise that came from that smile warmed his heart; the promise that he would always be there._

__

I smiled, liking the way that I had ended it. I’m sure people would be a little disappointed in the way that I didn’t have them sleep together in the same bed, but I was saving that for later. I read over that last bit, and I realized that I had taken a small portion of how I felt about Eren’s eyes and put it into my story. Ooh, this was more intense than I thought.

I needed to post, now. So I got onto my account and filled out the forms. I hadn’t posted in at least a few weeks, and my readers deserved it. I quickly posted the chapter and leaned back, relieved that I was back to typing.

I mulled around my apartment for a while, and I cleaned everything spotless and made myself some tea. I had run out of coffee, so I reminded myself to get some late on tonight. About and hour after I posted, I went back on and casually clicked on my works tab to see if anyone has read since I’d updated. I took a sip of my tea as the screen loaded...

...and promptly spit it out, thankfully missing my laptop. The amount of hits had gone up so much, they were almost doubled. I had gone up at least 200 kudos, and I had a full inbox of comments to read.

I sat still and took in these numbers. Why were they so high? I didn’t think that a simple smutty chapter could cause that to happen. I decided to check my inbox and see what the people said. The first comment I saw made my fingers freeze over the keys:

_100yearsinpeace brought me here, and after their review, I had to check it out, and I’ve gotta say that this is incredibly good! Keep writing please!_

Wait, _100yearsinpeace_? Wasn’t that Eren’s user? What review? I scrolled down the massive amount of comments, and while some were from my common group, the majority all said that they came from Eren’s review. He reviewed? Then I saw it, a comment,a slightly longer one, from the user _100yearsinpeace_. I took a deep excited breath and read it.

_Hey, I’ve gotta say, that I’ve been following this fic ever since it started and I really have enjoyed every moment of it. You write things out very well, and you’re very descriptive. The Corporal’s relationship that you’ve built up has made this an incredible story. I’m going to do what I should’ve done at the beginning, and that’s bookmark this awesome fic under my starred page. Keep writing dude. I’ll be looking forward to it._

I leaned back in my chair, dumbfounded. Holy shit, that just happened. My story had been reviewed by Eren, and now it was bookmarked on his starred page. I couldn’t believe it. No wonder my stats had jumped; all the people who followed him saw that he recommended it and had all read it.

My body was feeling content to just sit there and let the world go on. I was so stunned that I doubt I would’ve reacted if a SWAT team burst into my house and held me at gunpoint. However, that didn’t include overly enthusiastic friends that threw themselves at you and grabbed your face with both hands.

I hadn’t heard the door open, and I had barely registered the loud screech of “LEEEEEEVVIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!” that filled my apartment. But I finally snapped into the reality of the situation when my head was being shaken back and forth. I grabbed the hands holding my face and was able to stop them for a moment to see that Hanji was straddling me.

“Get off me, shitty glasses!” I yelled out, pushing her away. She fell on the floor with a thump, but she was too excited to stay down, and she instantly popped back up like one of those creepy clown music box toys.

“LEVI LEVI YOU’LL NEVER GUESS WHO REVIEWED YOUR FANFICTION!” I inwardly smirked. Um, yeah, I think I could guess who she was referring to. But I liked using her explosive fangirl moments to use as blackmail later, and this seemed like it would be a good show. So I played along. “Who reviewed it?” I asked casually.

Hanji took a deep breath and I had the sense to cover my ears before she screamed out, much like the female titan shifter screamed, “ _100yearsinpeace_ WROTE A REVIEW ON YOUR WORK AND THEY REALLY LIKED IT AND YOUR STATS HAVE GONE UP AND YOU’RE NUMBER 4 ON THE RANKS OF MOST POPULAR FOR OUR GENRE AND...”

Wait, hold up, what? I was _what_ rank? _I was 4th_? That couldn’t be right, I was still down in the upper twenties. I didn’t have to pretend to look shocked. I turned to my computer and quickly typed up TS-C under the name for the topic. Off to the side were the top 5 ranked writers for our fandom. My eyes flew down the list and froze on the sight of “4) _thecorporalsbrat_ ”.

I couldn’t believe it again. I was FOURTH.

I.was.fricking.FOURTH.

I lost it then and there. I guess now we both have blackmail fangirling material now. I jumped up from my chair and grabbed her by the shoulders and, I kid you not, started leaping around the room, squealing with excitement. She copied me, and we were both so excited, grabbing each other’s hands and jumping in place and shaking and just so happy that this was happening. That’s another great thing about Hanji; she can feel this level of excitement for me, at something I’ve done, and she doesn’t care about herself at all.

We leaped around the room for a while, and by the time we were done we were both sweaty and thirsty. She went to the kitchen and, taking several packets out of her bag, started to make something while I sat on my small couch and relaxed. She came back with two cups of a light brown drink, and my nose perked up at the smell of coffee. She placed one in front of me, and I saw, thankfully, that it was iced. She sat down next to me, and we drank our coffee for a little bit, still slightly breathing heavily. Then she set down her cup and looked at me expectantly.

“Levi, did you see what they wrote? They said that they had been reading it from the beginning. It’s on their starred page!” She had started shaking again, a mixture of the caffine, her natural energy, and the situation she was referring to.

I was having trouble taking all of this in, but I had a seemingly permanent smile attached to my face. I was so happy. “Hanji, I don’t know! I don’t know why they did this!” I had to be careful that she wouldn’t figure out my secret; that I knew the person who was causing all of this ruckus.

“But Levi, you’re fourth! I can’t believe it!” She smiled brilliantly at me and I felt her excitement. We talked for a little while more before I asked her, “So why did you come over?” “Oh,” she responded, “I saw that you updated and so I had to read it, and when I finished I had to read the first few comments, and theirs was the second comment. I freaked out and tried to call you, but I forgot because every time I refreshed the page, your hits went up. Then I saw maybe 20 minutes ago that you were fourth, and I had to come over and tell you, because I wasn’t sure you knew about it.”

I nodded. I was in a stunned state that mostly consisted of just sitting there and smiling. We hung out and talked for a while, then discussed our fanfictions for a bit before she told me she had to leave. I nodded, and after we cleaned up, she waved goodbye as she walked out the door. I walked back over to my screen and, taking a deep breath, refreshed the page.

My hits were now over officially doubled from before this chapter, I had gotten 143 more kudos since I last checked, my inbox was full again, and...I had a new notification. I clicked it and read the simple phrase that was there before falling on the floor, completely stunned, and then rolling around and screaming louder than before. The little notification blinked cheerfully on my screen, reading,

_“Congratulations! You are now the 2nd most popular writer for this fandom.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed to boost Levi's popularity. Eren is in the number one place, by the way.  
> I love you guys, and I'll see you for my Wednesday update! Please send in suggestions! I really do appreciate them.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi meets Eren at the coffee shop and they get some fan interaction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I'M BACK! I'm sorry this is later than I wanted to post. But anyway, I'll be back to posting now! I'm also sorry, because this chapter is a bit of a filler, but it's still funny. The idea for this came from one of my friends. Read on!  
> I also need to say this. I want to really thank the people who read this because I get really really REALLY happy when I read your comments! I think that that's part of what helps me keep writing this and I'm loving this just as much as you guys are so OMG THANK YOU!!!

I couldn’t do anything productive the rest of the day. I was too elated about what had happened to me. I had pretty much become famous over-night. Stuff like this didn’t happen except in weird fanfictions. But then again, my life recently had become a fanfiction.

I had spent all of the day reading comments and refreshing the page to look at my views. They had stopped dramatically growing after about 2 hours, but they were still gradually going up, a couple views at a time. I was ecstatic.

I had stayed up until early morning looking things over and chilling out online. I was also thinking up how my next chapter would go. Eren had given me so many ideas, I needed to work off of those first. They were amazing plot pieces, and I was truly excited to get ideas from him. I finally felt the tiredness overwhelm me and I crashed at about 1 in the morning.

I woke up and lay in bed for a while, remembering everything that had happened the past few days. Sheesh, everything was taking a dramatic turn for me. But I didn’t mind; it was a turn for the better. I smiled and got up, thinking about what productive things I should be doing today. I cleaned my apartment spotless, which had never been hard because it was always pretty spotless, and went out to restock on groceries. I got back at around noon, and after lunch, decided to wait a few more hours before going to the coffee shop for the night.

I wondered if Eren would be there. I really hoped so. It felt like ages since I had seen him. I...missed him. Ok, yeah, I’ll admit it. I really missed him. I missed his laugh, his energy, his smile, his clean apartment, his muscled arms, his strong stance, his deep, enticing eyes...god, I have a problem. Doctor, give me a cure.

I grabbed my bag with my laptop in it and headed down to the 104th at around 6. I turned down the alley that most people would be too afraid to go down, but I knew better. Only the best and bravest people got to go to the 104th. I walked through the small door and looked towards my usual seat and my heart leaped.

Eren was sitting at my table. I granted myself a small grin and walked over. He looked up, and when he saw me, he smiled so wide it looked like it would split his face. He looked really happy to see me...or was I looking too much into it? He waved me over, as if it wasn’t my table he was sitting at. I rolled my eyes and sat down next to him.

“You know, this is my table, right?” He grinned and nodded. “Yep, but I had the feeling you wouldn’t mind much.” He was right, I realized. Normally, if people even came into my corner of the shop, one look from my “soulless gray stare from the devil” as Hanji called it, would send them backing up and sitting in the opposite corner. But with Eren, I didn’t mind. In fact, I welcomed his company.

“Tch,” I replied. I saw his screen was open, and I peered at it, expecting words. Instead I was greeted with the sight of the shifter using his 3D Maneuver Gear and launching himself towards...

...Justin Bieber’s face on top of the Colossal Titan. I knew what this was. I gave him a pointed look, and he looked at his screen in confusion before giving a small laugh and turning back to me. “Yeah, I like watching the cracks.”

I was alright with cracks. I had only seen a couple, but I had never really looked into them. I hadn’t even know that there were cracks for War on Giants, but then again, I had never searched for them.

Eren pulled out a headphone and extended it to me. “Wanna listen too?” I stared at the bud in his slender fingers, then back at him, before finally reaching out and taking it. I inserted it into my ear and pulled it out instantly because of the loud sound of an explosion. I glared at him and he smiled sheepishly before turning it down. I put it back in and he started the video over.

I can now say that I will be looking into cracks a lot more. Even though at first I thought they were below me, these were actually pretty funny. We watched the normal ones before I noticed him give me a sneaky kind of smile as he clicked on another one. I was confused until I saw that the main ship in this one was TS-C. Oh, this will be interesting.

It was funny, and I was enjoying it. They pointed out in funny ways how every look that they shared held something else, and added a funny song into the mix. It turned out that the video was one in a short series, so we watched all six of them.

Although, something really weird happened. While we were laughing at a certain part in the second one, I noticed two figures walking shyly over to us. I looked up to see two high-school looking girls walking over, one pushing the other in front, the girl in front looked embarrassed. I pressed the pause button, and Eren gave me a look of confusion before looking up and his mouth going into a small ‘Oh’ shape.

“Go, do it,” the girl pushing said to the other. She gave the girl a final shove, almost making her run into our table. The girl who had been in front, who was slightly shorter and had darker hair, shot a look of annoyance to the taller girl, before turning to us and her face going redder than I had ever seen on a person before.

“Um...I...uh...we were...” She was struggling with her words, and kept looking at us as if we were super important. I sighed and said, “Just spit it out, we’re not gonna bite.” She looked down and I noticed she was shaking. Eren had noticed too. He reached out an arm and poked her lightly in the side. She looked at him, scared senseless. “Hey,” Eren said softly, “it’s alright, we really don’t mind. What were you going to say?”

She quivered but regained her voice just enough to say what she wanted. “This is going to be really awkward if you don’t, but...” she looked at us and visibly gathered her courage before she blurted, “...do you guys watch War on Giants?”

I looked at her in surprise, and Eren’s face mirrored mine. “Um...yeah?” He said, looking confused and a bit amused. The taller girl, who had been standing back and obviously enjoying her friend’s discomfort, smiled and walked over to the shorter and slung an arm over her shoulder. “See, you had nothing to worry about. Plus, this is crazy enough as it is.” The shorter girl shifted with embarrassment and gave us a small smile before throwing the other off.

“Why did you want to ask?” I said, looking at the two girls. The shorter girl had gained her courage and responded, looking excited. “Well, first off, you two look a lot like the main characters, and I got excited, and plus you two were doing exactly what I was...” Here, she shut down and looked at the floor. The taller snorted and finished for her. “...typing up. She’s writing a fanfiction about her OTP, which is the shifter and the Corporal.”

The shorter girl’s head shot up and she elbowed her taller friend, looking mortified. I was looking at her in surprise. She wrote fanfictions too? Huh, this was interesting. So that meant...wait. “So, we looked like a couple to you?” I asked with my deadpan voice. The writer girl’s face looked so red I was sure she was going to pop. I felt Eren shift next to me, and a quick glance showed his face was pretty red as well. “Well...I-I just...I had typed up that they were in a c-coffee shop and they were watching a movie together and...” she stuttered, looking more embarrassed than I had ever seen a person before.

Eren finally spoke up. “Yeah, that’s fine. So we gave you motivation?” He smiled up at the girl, and I’m sure she melted inwardly at the sight of his eyes. I felt a twinge of jealousy for some reason at the fact that he was looking at someone else with kindness with those beautiful eyes. Then I shook my head. Why should I get jealous over the fact that he was looking at someone else?

“Yeah,” she squeaked out. “Thanks,” she whispered before covering her face with her hands and bolting away. The taller girl gave an amused snort before turning to us and pinning us with her hazel glance. “Really, thanks. She was having trouble, and when she saw you two, she had the idea, so after she typed it up, I told her to go talk to you guys. You can see how that went.” She gestured to a table where the writer girl was sitting with her face still in her hands, and even from here I could see that her ears were still red.

“Do you both write?” Eren asked, looking at the other girl, then at the taller girl standing near us. “Yeah,” she responded, pinching the bridge of her nose, “but I don’t ship TS-C. I’m just her beta.” She gave a look back at the girl and smirked as she leaned towards us, whispering confidentially, “She’s probably more embarrassed over the fact that you looked at her,” she said to Eren. “She has a pretty huge crush on the shifter’s character, and she especially loved the eyes, so she’s not gonna live this down for a looong time.” She smiled almost evilly and I knew that that meant she would be teasing her smaller friend about this meeting for possibly years to come. “Either way, thanks for listening to her.” She straightened and walked back over to the table, leaving us in stunned silence for a few moments.

“Well,” Eren said finally, “that was probably the most interesting fan experience I’ve ever had.” I nodded and looked back at him. He looked at me, and I stared at his eyes again. So other people loved his eyes? Too bad, I thought, because this pair of bright eyes is all mine.

Oh god...did I really just think that? I looked at Eren and he was looking at me with a slightly surprised look. “What did you say?” He asked, looking confused. I blushed hard as I realized. Oh shit, I had said that out loud! Although, he had sounded like he hadn’t heard me, so I hoped I was ok. “Nothing,” I responded. I put the bud back in and turned to the screen. He took the hint and put his own bud back in before unpausing the video.

We watched the rest of the small series, and the awkward encounter melted away with our laughter. When the last video finished, he let out a final laugh and closed the laptop. I took out the bud and handed it back when I noticed that we had scooted close to each other. As in, our thighs were pressed together. I jolted back, and he suddenly seemed to notice, as he turned red.

“Well, do you like cracks now, Levi?” I felt a weird tingle course through me as he said my name. It felt...nice hearing my name come from him. I wanted to hear it again. “Yeah, I think I’ll be looking those up again soon.” I gave him a smile and he grinned back. Gah, he looked really, really attractive right now. I had to stop that thought when I remembered something else I wanted from him, besides him...wait, what?

“Oi, Eren?” He looked up from where he had been putting his laptop in his bag. “Yeah?” “Well,” I shrugged my shoulders and scratched the back of my neck on my undercut. “I was wondering if...” Why was this feeling like I was asking a high-school crush to the prom? “...if I could have your number?” I shivered inwardly at how lame that sounded.

He didn’t looked like he cared. “Oh, right, I never gave it to you!” He held out his hand. “May I?” I unlocked my phone and pulled up the new contact tab before handing it to him. “I was going to ask you the same thing today, but I guess you beat me,” he said, typing into my phone. I saw a light blush dust his cheeks at this comment.

I took back my phone and was looking it over before another phone was thrust into my vision. I looked up and saw Eren’s blushing face as he held out his phone. “Can you put your info in mine?”

My heart raced as I took the phone and typed in my information. Eren had wanted my number too. I couldn’t help but feel exceedingly happy about that. That meant he liked me enough to want me to stick around. He wanted to build our relationship into something more...no wait, I’m looking into it too much. We’re friends, that’s all. And friends exchange numbers.

I finished typing and clicked the home button to get out of it. I froze when I saw the background, then laughed a bit. He looked at me, then at his phone, and he blushed. “Hey, don’t judge!” I was kinda judging. I had seen the picture before. It was artwork of what we assumed was while the two were having sex, and the shifter took a picture on his phone of the Corporal’s exhausted, moaning face. I had thought that would have been a funny prospect, but it was funnier because it was a picture of someone taking a picture of someone else while having sex. Although, now it was becoming more awkward, because apparently I looked like the Corporal. Was that what I would look like when-nope, nope, NOPE, not thinking about that.

“Nah, it’s funny that that’s your background,” I responded, handing back the phone, which he pocketed hastily with clear embarrassment. I thought about my background, which was simply a picture of my OTP standing back to back. I find that that’s more acceptable around other people than a picture of them kissing or shit like that.

“Anyway, now we have each other’s numbers, so I guess that means that we’ll be keeping in contact, right?” Eren asked me, looking hopeful, his eyes gleaming. Damn those gorgeous eyes and their ability to make me do anything.

“Well no shit, Sherlock,” I responded. “I just gave you my number so you could stare at it.” He gave a laugh, and I shivered again at how beautiful it sounded. Damn him, and damn his gorgeousness. It was going to be the end of me.

“Good,” he said, leaning down and grabbing his backpack, “because we need to leave.” I stared at him with sudden worry. Wait, was he leaving me...shit, this makes it seem like a relationship.

He caught my worried look and gave a little smirk as he pointed to the blond-Armin- who was standing near us with a slightly embarrassed look on his face. “It’s closing time, so we need to go back?” I let out a tiny sigh of relief and instantly regretted it. “Oh, right.”

We left the shop less than a minute later and Eren and I walked towards our apartments in silence. He finally broke it. “So, do you think that we could maybe...” He stopped for a moment, and even in the darkness I could see the blush that spread across his face. “...maybe we could...hang out again soon?”

I gave a low chuckle that didn’t reflect my accelerated heartbeat. Oh my god, he wanted us to hang out again? God must have decided to shower me with golden luck dust or something, because these past few days have been working in true wonders for me. “Yeah, that’d be nice,” I responded, thankful that my voice didn’t shake with excitement.

He turned his head to me and gave a wide smile that for some reason was making my knees weak. “Awesome!” We had reached his apartment, so we stopped for a moment before he could go inside. It was awkward, because we clearly both didn’t know what to say. I took a deep breath before muttering out, “See you soon, then?” His face lit up and he responded with an enthusiastic, “Hell yeah.” He clearly hadn’t meant to say that, because he threw his hands up to his mouth and quickly opened the door, giving me a quick wave before rushing up the stairs. He wasn’t fast enough for me to miss the clear blush on his ears as he passed a light inside.

I stood there outside his door for a minute before turning to walk down the street towards my own apartment. I was a bit taken back by how excited he seemed when I said we would meet soon. Was he looking forward to it?

Ok, the blush that was on my face was never going away.

I unlocked my door and walked inside. I put my bag down at its usual place and went straight into sleep preparation. After thoroughly brushing my teeth and washing my face, I changed into loose fitting bottoms and a thin but tight fitting white t-shirt. I plugged in my phone near my bed side and crawled into a cocoon of warmth.

I was drifting off when a sudden vibration jolted me. I turned towards my phone and saw that it was lit up. “Damn it Hanji, if you’re texting me about some stupid...” My voice trailed off when I saw the contact name.

**New Message: Eren**

I stared at the screen before finally swiping at the message.

**Eren: Hey.**

Ok, short and simple. But how do I respond beside the typical, “Hey”?

**Me: Hey.**

Well shit. I’m not a creative person.

**Eren: Sorry for texting so late. I just wanted to make sure we actually got messages and stuff.**

Well, I had to be thankful that he actually typed correctly and not with a bunch of slang. That shit annoyed me to no end.

**Me: Np. We’re all good.**

Damn, and now I just abbreviated. What the hell.

**Eren: Anyway, just checking. I should probably let you sleep, huh?**

I was about to reply when another text interrupted me.

**Eren: Yeah, I’ll let you sleep. Night, Levi.**

For some reason I fell asleep with that permanent blush just remembering that he had typed my name. God, I was becoming a sap.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you don't know which picture I'm talking about, here's a link:  
> https://41.media.tumblr.com/96a2878068e169ac84dde15b71bc5e80/tumblr_n1ka9tz35U1shqd99o1_500.jpg


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren invites Levi to a special event.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to post my next couple chapters daily to make up for how long I was gone. :) Onward and upward!

_2 weeks later..._

 

I opened my eyes to my alarm and shut it off impatiently. I sighed and rolled over before jolting up with a smile. I had been smiling a lot recently, and today was one of those that needed to be started with a smile. It was Friday.

I wasn’t just happy that it was a weekend day, but also because I would be meeting with Eren at the coffee shop this morning. We had organized this nearly two weeks ago. We would meet up at the coffee shop on corresponding days, meaning Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. It made those days something to really look forward to.

I had been spending a lot of time around Eren recently, and it kinda made me feel a bit bad when I thought about how I had been ignoring my other friends. And by that I mean Hanji. She still would come over and text me, but I was only half there, and never really remembered what she said. Then again, I never really remembered half of what she said anyway.

**Shitty Glasses: Oh, by the way, I need to tell you some exciting news, so call me soon! It’s too awesome to text about.**

I never responded.

Today Eren had said that he wanted to do our meeting right as the shop opened, which was 5 in the morning. I had wondered why, but I really didn’t mind, because I loved spending time with him-wait. The thought stopped me mid brush of my teeth. Loved spending time with...no no...I really enjoyed it, there. That sounded less cutesy. I hurried through my morning routine and grabbed my already prepped bag by the door and raced outside, not stopping until I could see into the windows of the shop.

As usual, Eren was already there. I practically crashed through the door and his eyes instantly greeted me, and I nearly fell to the floor from their intensity. I recovered and composed myself before going over to our table...wait, when had it become OUR table? It was still my table, he was just parking here.

The instant I sat down, he leaned towards me, and excited look in his eyes. “I wanted to tell you some exciting news!” I propped my elbows up on the table and held my head up on my hands, trying my best to look like an excited middle-school girl. “O-M-G, what happened?”

Eren giggled at my imitation and playfully shoved my hands down. “I wanted to ask if you wanted to do something with me and my sister.”

Huh. This was new. I never knew that he had a sister. In fact, his family was a topic that we typically avoided. And also...he wanted me to go somewhere with him? I couldn’t fight the traitorous blush that had begun creeping onto my face.

“Depends on what that thing is,” I responded, trying to sound coy enough to embarrass him. I really enjoyed making him flustered, because I felt like it was payback for him making me feel weak everytime he freaking looked at me.

I was satisfied when he withered under my gaze and turned his attention to the floor, a clear blush on his face. Hah, gotcha. “Well, it was just...well, I don’t know if you would want to do it, because I don’t know if you...run.”

I sat back into my seat and contemplated what he had just said. I worked out enough to where I was always pretty fit to do anything. I did run in the spring and fall, because I prefered to be able to wear a jacket when I ran, because then I wasn’t burning up, like in the summer, and I wasn’t freezing like I would be in winter.

“Yeah I run, why?” I was curious to see where this would be going. He looked up, embarrassment still clear on his face. “Well, there’s this...5k that my sister told me about, and I got super excited when I heard about it, and then I was thinking that you would like to come too, because...” He had been getting more and more excited as he talked, and the last bit came out in a large gust of air.

“...it’s War on Giants themed. As in, it’s a cosplay run.”

My eyes widened and I sat forward eagerly. What? There was a such thing? Why had I never heard about this? He caught my excited look and continued eagerly. “My sister found this ad near where she lives. Apparently it’s like an obstacle course thing. A ton of people will go and split up into three teams, like the Garrison, the Military Police, and the Survey Corps. Then those teams will be sent to different obstacle locations. The Garrison will be sent to a ruined city for their run and have to avoid the general obstacles. Like, they just leap over things and such. The Military Police group will go to a place where there’s a bunch of criminal ‘scum’ and have to avoid being killed by the rebels.” He took a deep excited breath before continuing.

“And the Survey Corps,” he said in wonder, “will go to another ruined city, but there will be professional runners around dressed as titans, and the whole goal is to take them down before they take you down. You even get tools!” He was jumping in his seat now, looking too excited to continue speaking. I didn’t blame him. My mind was nearly exploding at the idea of this.

“When?” I asked quickly, before he could continue to torture me with further details. “When is this?” He stopped in his rant and mumbled something quietly. I resisted the urge to shake him until he told me, but resorted to reaching out and grasping his shoulders. “Tell me.”

“Tomorrow.”

Oh, so that’s why he was scared. He looked at me, suddenly desperate. “I should’ve asked earlier, but I need you to come...”  His face flushed and he continued hastily. “...I mean, it would be better if you came, because I kinda...already bought you a pass.”

He what? “You what?”

He flushed deeper and continued. “I know I shouldn’t have been so quick to assume, but I thought you’d really like to go and-” I had abandoned all reason in that moment and tackled him in a huge hug, overcome with my excitement. He fell out of his chair and I landed on top of him, pinning him to the floor. I didn’t register the situation and just kept on hugging him as I babbled. “Yes, yes, a thousand times, _hell yes!_ ” God, what was this, a marriage proposal? He didn’t move and his face was shocked, but melted into a relieved but embarrassed smile as he looked up at me.

“Great, that’s awesome, but could you maybe get off me now? It might not be a good idea to hug me like this in public.” I suddenly realized our position and I swear I had never felt so mortified in my life. I crawled off him and looked around, feeling immense relief when I saw that the barista’s hadn't noticed, and we were the only other people in the shop.

“Um, yeah, sorry.” I tried to forget the feeling of how comfortable and warm he had been when I had been on top of him. We both sat on the floor and ignored the fact when we looked at each other, our excitement dismissing our manners. “So I can come? You really bought me a pass? Wait, which one did you sign us up for?”

“Levi, Levi,” Eren shook his head with an amused look, his tone the same as if he were talking to a small child. “Why would I sign us up for anything beside the Survey Corps? What kind of person would I be?” I sighed with excitement. “Yes...” I dragged out the word. Then I had another thought. “Wait, when tomorrow is this?”

“It’s later. It’s around 8.” He smiled and looked almost maniacally excited. “We’ll be running in the dark. Apparently there’s glowsticks involved.”

Glowsticks, huh? This sounded really fun. “Ok, so how are we getting there?” I asked, suddenly curious. He looked at his folded legs and said softly, “Well, I was thinking that we could drive there together, like a road trip.”

My heart kicked into overdrive. Time spent alone? With Eren? Just me and Eren? Wait, when would this be? The race was tomorrow, right? “Isn’t the race tomorrow? How far away is this place?”

He looked more and more embarrassed as he told me. “Well, it would be ideal to leave today, because it’s about 12 hours away.” I realized that that was probably the reason he had asked to have our meeting so early in the morning. “Can you...” He looked at me hopefully. “...maybe be ready soon?”

I practically flipped the table over as I leaped up out of my seat. “I will be ready in 5 minutes if needed.” I was literally bouncing at this point. He smiled widely at my enthusiasm. “Sweet! So, when can you leave?”

I paused my excited bounce as I thought. I’d probably just need to tell Hanji and Erwin. Nobody else would miss me. “I need to talk to just two people,” I responded. “Cool, well, how about you head home to get your shit situated and to talk to people, and I’ll be over in a half hour to get you.” Eren was grabbing my bag and holding it out to me. I snatched it away and was halfway out the door before I leaned back inside and yelled, “No problem!” I let the door slam behind me and was home in less than two minutes.

I threw my bag against the door and raced to my closet, pulling out my phone as I did so. I decided to only tell them that I was busy the next few days and couldn’t hang out with them. I made a quick call to Erwin first, because I knew he’d be easier to reason with. I was correct, his only response being, “That’s perfect actually, because I’ll be gone the next few days at a event. I’ll meet up with you sometime later.” I hung up and took a deep breath before calling Hanji.

“LEVI WHY DIDN’T YOU CALL BACK IT IS SUPER IMPORTANT AND-” I cut her off. “Hanji, I can’t do anything with you for the next few days, because I’ll be busy with my new friend. I’m sorry, but I already promised.” I rushed through my words, trying to get the message through before she tried to convince me otherwise.

“BUT LEVI-” “No, Hanji, I promised, so it can wait. I’ve gotta leave soon, so I’ll talk later. Bye.” I hung up, her still loudly and frantically protesting on the other end. I threw the phone on my bed and literally dove into my fanboy closet.

I landed among my body pillows and leaped up instantly, looking for the light switch. I found it and turned my head to the special corner. All the clothes back there were wrapped in plastic, so as to not get wrinkles. I had worn the outfit once before.

I pulled out the jacket and the harness from their respective packages. I took the time to admire them before putting them back and taking their hangers out of the closet and gently draping them over my bed. I took out the smaller leather hip wrap thingy next and then dug deep into the back and took out my boots. I placed everything into a bag and looked at them happily before rushing to put other things into my suitcase.

I was racing back with my toothbrush when there was a knock on my door. I rushed to the door and peered out the eyehole and saw it was Eren. I yanked open the door before rushing back to my bag to shove in my stuff.

He walked inside my apartment, taking everything in with interested eyes. “Huh. It’s really clean.” I snorted, figuring that that would be the first thing to say about it. He walked over to my bedroom, where I was shoving things into my bag, creating an organized explosion.

“Where’s your outfit?” He asked. I paused everything else and pulled out the plastic wraps, placing them gently on the bed. He looked them over with satisfaction. Then he let out a small cry and I whirled around. “What?”

“Where’s the white pants?” He asked, looking worried. “And the Corporal’s grey collared shirt?” He gave an outraged gasp and whirled around, grabbing my shoulders. I leaned back, suddenly afraid of his furious gaze.

“And WHERE IS THE CORPORAL’S CRAVAT?” He roared into my face. I winced, then pushed his hands off my shoulders and I felt my sassy anger come forth. “I couldn’t find them, dipshit,” I yelled back at him. “Trust me, I’ve looked, and believe it or not, it’s a tiny bit hard to find a cravat in an area outside of France. Maybe I should be checking more towards the Eastern side of the United States, huh?”

He had stumbled back, looking scared at my outburst, then held up his hands and slowly walked towards me, like someone would walk towards an angry elephant. “Chill out, it’s alright. I was just surprised, because I would have thought that since you look so much like the Corporal that you would have the full outfit.”

I calmed my breath and looked down, embarrassed at my pointless outburst. “Well, I couldn’t find pants my size, or that colored shirt,” I started, “and I really couldn’t afford any type of cravat anywhere I looked.” I shot a glance up at Eren and saw a contemplative look on his face. Then it lit up and he turned to me.

“We could go shopping on the way over there.” I fully turned my gaze to him in surprise. He looked eager. “I mean it. We can’t have you going without a full costume with your pale identical Corporal’s face. It wouldn’t be right. Plus, I have a shit ton of money to blow, so consider it my treat.” He passed the clothes back to me and I put them back in my suitcase, grateful for an excuse to not look up at his face due to my embarrassed grateful one.

“Either way, you should really hurry if we’re going to be shopping. You almost ready?” He asked me. I nodded, and despite my protests grabbed my bag and took it out to his Porsche. I was a little bit excited that we would be driving in his Porsche. I had never ridden in an expensive car besides Eren’s, and I enjoyed that idea.

I rushed around my apartment for last minute checks and making sure I had everything I needed. Eren had told me that we would be gone for around four days, so I had to make sure that everything was in order before I left. When I was finally satisfied, I locked the door and headed downstairs where Eren was leaning against his car.

I caught my breath as I saw him. He looked so...well...attractive, leaning up against a fancy car and with sunglasses on, damn, he even rocked the loose t-shirt and jeans he was wearing. How did he not have a girlfriend right now?

Because he’s going to belong to me...wait, what?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is going to be great...


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren takes Levi shopping, with a few extra developments involved...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am a horrible person. I already didn't post a chapter yesterday! Ugh, please, please, PLEASE forgive me! This chapter was a bit harder to write.   
> I up-ed the attraction a bit in this chapter. Hopefully it's all good.

We got in the Porsche and drove out of town quickly. And by quickly, I mean quickly. Eren could drive that car fast and well. He would purposely speed up really quickly to make me gasp and grab the armrests, and he would laugh at me.

We drove out for about another hour before we got onto the highway. Eren made me the atlas and handed me the map, directing me to a specific town where he said that there was a chain of outlets where we could shop for my clothes.

The whole drive was pleasant. I’m not sure who was enjoying it more, me or him. I was excited to be so close to him for such a long period of time. I played out numerous scenarios in my head, and the majority of them had me blushing and turning my face away from him, because my virgin mind was able to cook up some pretty steamy make-out sessions.

That whole part scared me. I could picture us kissing. I could picture it so well, because of all the art I had seen previously, and because, deep down, no matter how hard I tried to push it away...I wanted to kiss him. I had started to have fantasies, and to my utter horror had had to change my sheets once. Thinking about it, I shivered, remembering the wet dream and I stiffened at the sudden hardness I wasn’t used to.

No, this couldn’t be happening. I hadn’t found my sexual preference yet, remember? At this point I was just trying to convince myself. I knew I was gone. This whole thing scared me to no end.

However, he had clearly been thinking about something blush worthy too, because he would shoot me glances and then turn away and blush while shifting around in his seat. I had a sneaking suspicion that I wasn’t the only one getting random hard-ons.

My atlas skills paid off and we were soon pulling into the strip malls. He bolted out of the car and literally jumped in excitement as I slowly got out and marveled at how large the place was. It was enormous, and the whole thing reeked with giant dollar signs. Just from looking at the buildings, I could tell that this was the kind of place where simple white t-shirts were $60.

I shot a nervous glance at Eren, who was still jumping around and looking as excited to shop at a high-school girl with a shit-ton of money to spend, although from what I knew about his bank status, that wasn’t too far from the truth. “Um, Eren? This place looks really expensive...”

He turned to me. “It is, but these shops will be the best place to find everything for your outfit, including the cravat.” He grabbed my arm and dragged me into the nearest entrance.

Eren clearly knew this place, because he led me to all the right stores instantly. He took me into a GAP store, which had always been mostly out of my budget. He led me straight to the men’s section and we found the perfect shirt almost instantly. The pants were a bit more of a problem, but Eren told me to keep looking while he checked somewhere else. He came back within a minute with several pairs of white jean pants that looked perfect for the cosplay. He handed them to me and told me to try them on.

In a changing room, I put on the shirt and then tried on the pants, feeling more than a bit annoyed at my short stature, because I only fit the smallest pair he had gotten me. But they fit, and that’s all that mattered to me. I looked into the mirror and was stunned at the person I saw. Cautiously I flattened out my face and then I didn’t see myself. I saw the Corporal, staring at me with a fierce intensity that had people shaking with fear that he might kick their asses into the next life and practically begging him to give them jobs to do in order to please him.

I forced myself to freeze in this position so I could enjoy looking at the Corporal and not having anything to fear, but then I forgot and started to be afraid of myself, and I dropped the act and backed up a step. It was time to show Eren. I shivered at what he might say when he saw me...wait, no. I should make it a surprise. I didn’t want him to see me now; I wanted him to see me fully in the outfit. I wanted him to look at me with the same adoration that the shifter showed to his Captain both in the anime and in the fandom. I wanted him to be mine...shit, shit, shit, I was having problems.

I quickly changed out of the outfit and walked back outside, holding the shirt and pants. Eren was sitting directly outside, and he looked up with expectation written all over his face, and I could see him hide his disappointment as he stood up. “I thought you were going to show me so I could see if the pants fit right.” I could tell he had just been wanting to look at me, so I pushed it. “Wanted to check out my ass, huh?” I joked.

His instantaneous tomato colored face told me everything I needed to know. I had to turn away to hide my own blushing face, because I was certain now that he felt something for me, but whether that was just a physical attraction or not I didn’t know.

“Um...by the way,” I said, trying to relieve the awkward tension between us, “where did you get these pants? I couldn’t find any this size in the men’s section...” He looked at me, and now I could see slight amusement as well as a different embarrassment on his face. “Uh...don’t get mad...but I checked the teen girls section and instantly found those.”

I shot him the most unamused look I could muster up. He laughed and he turned away quickly, but he almost instantly whirled back around. “Oh, and while you were in there, I found this.” He reached into one of the bags around his arms that I hadn’t noticed before, and pulled a white cloth out of it. Then he presented it to me with a huge radiant smile on his face.

I was confused for a moment, but then the gravity of what Eren was handing me hit me full in the face. My knees went weak as I took it, and I fell to the floor. I didn’t comprehend any of that though. All I could see was the white, clean, crisp, beautiful cravat in my hands.

And it had been from Eren.

I tore my gaze away from the piece of priceless fabric I was clutching and looked up at him. He was smiling so beautifully, so happy to see that I had finally gotten the final unattainable piece.

I couldn’t help it. My legs sprung up on their own, and for the second time today I latched onto him in a crushing hug. I was shaking, and since he was standing my legs didn’t touch the floor, and they naturally curled around his. My arms flew around his neck and my face pressed into his shoulder. He stumbled back as I grabbed onto him, but then looped his arms around my waist, successfully holding me up. I could feel his lips draw up in a smile.

I wasn’t thinking when I kissed his cheek.

The sudden jolt I felt run through his shoulders was the thing that clued me in. I realized what I had done and I quickly let go of him. I turned my face away and wanted to run to the nearest car and drive, but some part of me was pulsing with an air of partial...satisfaction? I came to realize that I had been wanting to do the things I had done today for a long time...and a lot of other things...

I still couldn’t look at him. I was too embarrassed and scared. What if he didn’t like that? What if I had been too forward? My voice came out in a whisper. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t thinking.”

I braced myself for something crushing. I waited for him to look at me like I was a freak for kissing him like that. Hell, that was probably awkward, because I was pretty sure he was straight. I couldn’t look at him.

Then I was grabbed from behind and lifted into the air, arms wrapping around my stomach in a breath-taking hug. Seriously, I couldn’t breathe, those arms forced out all of my air. I was choking when I felt his face come down towards mine. Then he laughed, and for a moment, I didn’t care that I was suffocating.

“Well, if that’s how happy you are about this, then I’d say I should be making you happy more often. It’s a nice change for you.” he whispered into my ear. My heart kicked into overdrive and a heavy blush coated my face as I shivered and thought about his words. He would be making me happy? That sounded slightly erotic.

Eren finally let me go and I could turn around to see his flushed face. He smiled, then knelt down and grabbed the clothing I had dropped on the ground when he had given me the cravat. “Come on, let’s check out. We’ve been here a little while longer then we should have.”

I checked the time and...”HOLY SHIT WE’VE GOTTA GO!” I practically screamed as I saw how late it already was. I grabbed the clothes from him and raced to the checkout. He followed slower, so I was left impatiently tapping my foot as he walked leisurely up to the register. He payed for everything and then we left the store with several bags in tow.

We walked out into the parking lot, but as we neared the Porsche, a red convertible drove up next to us, filled with college girls. They were all wearing fancy clothes and sunglasses, and looked like models. They looked like something straight out of Mean Girls (yes, I have seen that movie, and don’t tell Hanji, but I really like it).

“Hey, sweet thing!” One blond in the passenger side called out. She gave a flappy wave of her hand that for some reason made me sick. “This your car?”

Eren’s eyebrows shot up, and he looked from me to the girls to his car then back at me. “Yeah, you, the tall sexy guy, not the shorty next to you,” called out another blond, who was sitting in the backseat. I tensed up and clenched my fists a little. Well, thanks for very bluntly calling me unattractive.

Eren shot me a look of...something...was that disbelief? Then he turned back to the girls and responded, “Yeah, that’s my car.” The girls all turned to each other and chattered excitedly among themselves, and I could see with crystal clarity that they were going to be all over him in a matter of moments.

“So, we were just heading to the club, and like, we saw you coming out, so we were wondering if you wanted to join us and ditch the little bitch there,” said the only brunette, who was sitting in the back middle and chewing gum rather loudly. She finished her statement with a large bubble, and I swear the pop reverberated.

I seriously wanted to kill someone right now. Hell, if these were titans and I was actually the Corporal, they would all be melting away right now. But then what happened next took me by utter surprise.

“Oh, well I would love to,” Eren said, “but I couldn’t leave my boyfriend here. I love him too much.” He leaned down and pressed a loud kiss to my cheek, catching a corner of my lips in the process. 

The universe stopped around me, and I couldn’t think. I was frozen in a swirl of emotion and color, and my mind shut down. Did I die and go to heaven? I can see the light, and listen, there’s the chorus of angels...

He could clearly see that I wasn’t going to be moving anytime soon, so he took my hand and guided me to the door of his Porsche, smiling back at the dumbfounded girls. “He doesn’t do well with public affection, so thanks for making him embarrassed.” His voice sounded somewhat reprimanding, as if he was accusing the girls of making me upset. Well, they kind of had, but not for that reason at all.

The girls were staring at us in horror, and I could see through my heavenly daze that they looked terrified and slightly disgusted at the thought that they had almost partied with a gay guy. The blond in the driver’s seat shifted, still looking at us, then she turned her head and the car sped away. Eren was still standing outside by his door, and he gave another smile and wave at the quickly retreating car.

He got in and started his car, before shooting me a gaze that was so full of embarrassment and amusement it partially brought me out of my heavenly view. “Sorry about that,” he said, looking more and more amused. “I thought that pretending you were my boyfriend would get them to leave us alone. Some people are scared of gay people.” My eyes widened a bit as I took in that last statement.

“Wait, but aren’t you straight?” I finally choked out. Mental facepalm time, was that really my first words to him after something like that? He looked at his knees and he mumbled out, “I’m honestly not sure anymore.”

I guess I could see where he was coming from now. I didn’t know if I was gay or straight right now...no, I knew what I was. I was straight, and I didn’t like guys, save for one exception:

I liked Eren. I really, _really_ liked Eren.

That revelation had me a blushing mess in the passenger side of his car. He was clearly embarrassed too, and for a little while after we pulled out of the parking lot, we couldn’t talk to eachother. But then that went away when we both came to another realization:

We were going to have to stop somewhere to sleep. I could see it in his face; he looked really tired. I would’ve offered to drive, but I was super tired as well, plus I didn’t want to do anything bad to his expensive car. He finally sighed.

“I think we’re gonna have to stay at a hotel tonight. I can’t sleep in cars.” “Yeah, me neither,” I responded, knowing that it was true. I wouldn’t be able to sleep in a car with Eren. I would end up staring at him the whole time. “Plus, we need good sleep for the run tomorrow.” He pulled out his phone and opened an app. “Here, look for hotels nearby.”

Less than 10 minutes later we were pulling into a Holiday Inn. I could barely stand at this point, but I stumbled out of the car and grabbed my bag, pulling it into the lobby where Eren was checking us in. My mind was pretty fuzzy at that point, so I barely remembered anything later besides throwing off my shirt in the room, stumbling into my pajama bottoms, and throwing myself onto the nearest bed, falling asleep as soon as my face hit the pillows.

If I had been a little bit more awake, I could’ve taken the time to notice several things, such as the fact that I had only partially pulled on my pants, or the fact that when Eren came in he was really quiet as he got ready (oh how considerate of him), or that when he finally was ready that he came and lay down next to me.

Oh, and the fact that there was only one bed in the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will be interesting when they wake up, don't y'all think?


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren and Levi spend time at the hotel and see eachother in their outfits.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gah! This chapter was so hard and I hate it! And myself for taking so long to post it! And it's gonna be worse, now that I've started school. I might have to set a weekday to post. Oh the horror! I'm sorry in advance for all of this shit I'm putting you through. But I did finally make a tumblr for this! True to my name, you can find me at lemmesleepallday.tumblr.com (but be warned, since it's new, there isn't much yet:) )

I woke up feeling refreshed and more comfortable than I have ever felt before. I was confused for a moment, but when my hazed vision finally cleared my mind could finally register a few things.

First, that my pants were bunched up at the bottom of my legs. Second, that I didn’t see any other bed in the room.

And third, the fact that there was an arm slung around my bare waist.

I jolted but instantly stilled, not wanting to wake him up, for I realized that it was Eren who was behind me. My back was curled against his chest, and his breath was gently ghosting over the top of my head. I shivered from the feeling.

Was I dreaming? I must be having another fantasy dream, because this couldn’t actually be happening. Eren and I weren’t dating. We weren’t even more than friends. But thinking of all the contact between us in the past day and the affection we’d shown pretty much pointed to that.

I was reminded of the dream I had at Eren’s apartment that first night. This was very similar. I was almost preparing myself for him to say, “Not...”

“Comfortable...” I froze. Wait, was that real, or my imagination? I felt Eren shift behind me and he mumbled again, “This is really comfortable...” Holy shit, it wasn’t my imagination.

I took a deep breath and hoped he wouldn’t wake up. He shifted again and then let out a sigh that sent shivers down my spine as his warm breath traveled around the back of my head. His breathing went back to even and I let out that breath. Then taking great care, I rolled around in his arms and turned to face him.

I was greeted by a picture so beautiful that I realized no amount of the fan art could completely properly draw the shifter asleep. I wanted to take a picture and keep it to myself, because I was the only one to see the shifter actually sleeping. Even words from fanfictions didn’t do the sight justice.

His smooth face lay against the pillow with almost angelic grace. His lashes were long and framed his face, making him look more beautiful than any model. The arm that wasn’t still wrapped around me was somehow under his side, which normally would look uncomfortable but made him look like he was posing. As he breathed his eyebrows slightly went up, which gave him an innocent look. His mouth was slightly opened, and his lips looked...

Oh god, his lips. They were a soft, rosy-pink color that couldn’t be painted. The bottom lip was slightly fuller than the top, but they complemented his face and made you instantly focus on them. They looked perfect. They weren’t chapped or anything, just smooth. Eren let out a tiny yawn, and the way his lips curved up was a true masterpiece, like he was open-mouthed kissing someone and this was what he looked like without the other person.

Unbidden, the image of me as that other person rose up and wouldn’t go away. I licked my own lips and had the urge to kiss him, properly. He was asleep, wasn’t he? He would never know, but I would get to learn what those lips really felt like, and I could read fanfictions and think about how those didn’t do his amazing lips justice.

I gave a small shudder and felt myself unconsciously lean closer to his face, closer to those lips....then he shifted again and his eyes started to flutter open. I dropped back down into my previous position, but couldn’t turn around, or else he would know I was awake. I closed my eyes and tried to control them so they wouldn’t twitch and reveal the fact that I was awake.

I could hear the moment when he fully woke up. I felt a deep breath ghost over my face, and then I felt him jolt as he noticed our compromising position. I struggled to keep my face calm. I could still feel his breathing, but it was a little bit faster now. Then I felt a hand that wasn’t the one wrapped around my waist lightly brush through my hair, and I couldn’t help the little gasp that escaped my mouth. His hand stilled, but I quickly groaned slightly and shifted, mimicking being asleep. I felt his sigh of relief and he continued to stroke my hair.

No one besides my mother or Hanji had ever stroked my hair, and even if they had tried, I would’ve punched them. But with Eren, and the way he lightly stroked down to the roots of my hair in a loving manner, I didn’t care at all. It was so comforting and amazing, I never wanted him to stop.

“Oh, Levi,” Eren whispered. I had to completely focus on my being to stop myself from making any response, which was probably the hardest mental task I’ve even done. “How can you look so beautiful while asleep?”

I felt the by now very familiar feeling of my face starting to heat up. _Shit, shit NOT NOW!_

His hand moved away from my hair, and I had to hold back a groan of protest, but then I stilled when I felt that hands move to cup my face gently. “Aww, what are you dreaming about? You look so sweet when you blush,” he mumbled, sounding almost embarrassed. You, I instantly thought. I didn’t even try denying it now.

He brushed his fingers lightly down the side of my face and trailed them down my neck, and I shivered from the contact. He didn’t seem to think that was suspicious, so he kept going. Then he paused on my pulse and let his hand stay there. I could feel every vein in my neck pulsing from his touch. The arm that was wrapped around me pulled me closer to him until my head was against his chest, right next to his heart, and...

...he was the same. Every pulse in my neck was matched by his racing heart. We were connected.

He could feel it too, I realized as he spoke next. “We’re the same, aren’t we. I’ve never felt this connection to anyone before...” I could agree with him wholeheartedly. His touch was slow and gentle, and I felt like I could lay in those arms forever.

He shifted his legs, and I realized that they were intertwined, which was kind of an accomplishment, considering the fact that my pants were tangled around my feet. I could feel embarrassment being added to my blush. The arm that was over me moved slightly down, almost cautiously, and finally rested on my lower waist, and by lower, I mean as low as he could possibly go before touching my ass.

I shivered and pressed closer to him. Absolutely no one had touched me like that, ever. It felt rather...nice. I could get used to this.

Then he sighed and slowly retracted his arms, and I had never so much wanted to hiss with this much indignation as before now. He moved in favor to lightly shove me. “Levi? We need to get up.”

I groaned inwardly, but made my outward groan a little more sleep-like. I felt him leave my side as I pretended to wake up, probably to avoid awkward questions about our position. I rolled over and lazily opened my eyes, blinking from the sudden brightness that Eren had apparently been blocking from me before.

“Shit,” I groaned, not needing to fake that thought at all. I sat up and shielded my eyes, and caught a split second glimpse of him hastily shoving a shirt on. I wanted to run over and yank the shirt back off, because honestly, who wouldn’t want to see someone with such a hot bod like his in the morning?

I pretended to notice the obvious problems that I should have been addressing as if everything had been normal. “Um...there’s only one bed...” I shot a look at him. Let’s see you get out of this one.

His face was doing an excellent job of imitating a tomato as he spluttered. “I-I just...uh...I-slept on the floor!” He blurted. I looked at the floor and snorted. “Where’s your bedding?” He looked even more embarrassed and nervous, if that was even possible. “I-I didn’t need them! Plus, you were sleeping on them, so I didn’t want to take any from you!”

Then I was brought back to the next problem. At this point, I was sitting up, and when Eren had gotten out of the bed, he had thrown most of the covers off me, so only my feet were covered, and my legs and waist were entirely exposed. I became embarrassed now. “Um...sorry...” I leaned forwards and, reaching under the covers at my feet, found my pajama pants and pulled them up. “That wasn’t on purpose...”

He finally smiled a bit. “I don’t think it was. You were more tired than me. I came into the room after getting it and you were already asleep on the bed, and your pants were only half up.”

Oh. Whoops. I got out of the bed and stretched, taking notice that Eren was watching me from the corner of his eye. “Well, we should probably be getting set to go, right?” I asked, mid-stretch, trying to knock him out of staring at me (not that I minded at all) and to focus.

His eyes widened slightly and he gave a determined nod. “Right.” He grabbed some clothes from his suitcase and quickly rushed into the bathroom to change while I began to pack up all the things in the room.

We were back on the road within 20 minutes. It turned out that we were only about a half hour away from where we had booked our other hotel. I was worried that they’d be pissed at us for skipping a night, but Eren assured me that he had been able to call them before he crashed. We reached there easily, checked in, and put our things in our room. Much to my disappointment, there were two beds.

We spent the rest of our free time chilling in the hotel, typing up our fanfictions. It was nice. It almost felt like we were back at the coffee shop, and it wasn’t because of the surroundings; it was because Eren was there.

At around 6:30 he got up and, stretching, said, “We should probably change. We need to get going soon.” I nodded and went to my bag to get my clothes, including the new ones Eren had gotten me. He looked at me, clothes in his hands. “You wanna go first, or should I?” He asked, gesturing to the bathroom.

I had a thought about that. “Wait, how about one of us changes in the bathroom, and the other closes the curtains and changes in here, so that way we can both show off our outfits at the same time.” He smiled that gorgeous smile. “That’s an awesome idea!” He started walking to the bathroom, but hesitated and asked me, “I mean, only if you’re ok with me having the bathroom...” I waved a hand in his direction, already going over to close the blinds. “Go ahead.”

I heard the door close with a heavy clunk and I started to change into my outfit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Eren POV_

__

I walked into the bathroom, letting the door slam behind me. I put my clothes on the vanity and, leaning against it with both hands, took a deep shaky breath.

How had this happened? When had I decided that it was ok to overstep the boundaries of simple friendship and act like Levi’s boyfriend? The amount of affection I had shown towards him in the past few days were way too much like a couple. Hell, I had even slept with him! (Not in that way, ugh, don’t think about it...)

But the thing was, I hadn’t minded at all. It had felt completely natural to do those things. Even with those creepy girls that looked like they had jumped into our universe from Mean Girls (yes, I have seen that movie, don’t judge me), that had been the instantaneous thought on how to fix the problem, and I had just acted on it. I had even leaned down and kissed him, and I remember how I had inwardly freaked out when I realized that I had hit a corner of his lips too, and that even that tiny, tiny corner had felt soft and inviting.

But this morning, holy shit. I had thought he looked nice last night when I saw him laying on his stomach with his pants half down, and when I had lay down I could feel him in the darkness cuddle up to me in the sweetest way possible. But none of that could compare to the sight from this morning.

The sun had slipped over my shoulder and framed the area around him, and when I saw that he was facing me I nearly had a heart attack because he was just so damn beautiful. My arm had gone around him sometime last night, and I could feel our legs tangled together, which was interesting that it had worked out around his pants which had obviously slipped down to his ankles during the night.

His steady breathing through his nose caused his face to be relaxed and just perfect to stare at. His hair lay in a soft crown on the sheets where his head was, and he just-GAH! I hadn’t been able to help it when I had reached out and stroked his hair, and in sleep, he had seemed to like it. Then when I had whispered to him, he had gone red in his sleep, and the sight was just so damn adorable. I wanted to melt every time I saw his blush.

I had moved my hand to cup his face, and then like the night he had stayed at my apartment, I bought my fingers down to his pulse while drawing him closer to me. He had snuggled into my chest in the cutest way humanly possible and I could feel in that moment that we were connected again, but this time, we were going the same speed. I didn’t bother questioning it, and I felt a strong connection to him in a way that I couldn’t explain. Then when I realized that my hand had traveled dangerously close to his ass, I had to stop and wake him up before I lost my self restraint.

He had nearly caught me when he woke up, though. I thought I would explode from fear when he asked me where I had slept last night. I jumbled up all of that, and I was pretty sure that he figured we had slept in the same bed.

And now here I was, sitting in the bathroom, about to put on my outfit and see him in his; to greet each other as our characters for the first time. I couldn’t deny it anymore.

I definitely liked Levi.

I forced those thoughts out of my mind and got dressed. It took awhile, considering the harnesses and boots were a tight fit for me. But I was finally able to get them on.

I looked into the mirror and saw a sight I had only seen twice, but now I looked at it with new thought. I had been told a lot more recently that I looked just like the shifter, and now, I could see that. I fixed a determined look onto my face, and there he was. Holy shit.

I shivered as I turned away from the mirror and knocked on the closed door. “Hey, Levi? You dressed yet?” I was glad that my voice didn’t shake. What would he look like? Would there be something slightly off? Would it all be wrong?

“Yeah, I’m good. You?” I heard his voice. “I’m ready.” “Well, come out then, shit you don’t need my permission.” I took a deep breath, opened the door, and turned into the room.

My honest to goodness first emotion? Fear. He looked terrifying. He had pasted the monotoned look onto his face and I could’ve sworn he was about to kill someone. There was no Levi anywhere in the premises; there was only the Corporal.

I completely forgot myself, and, I kid you not, saluted him, with a strong, “Heichou!” He stared at me for a moment with a slightly confused look, and then suddenly he bust a gut laughing. He doubled over and held his stomach, and I became even more nervous until the fact pushed its way through my mind again. This wasn’t the Corporal; this was Levi, the guy that had cuddled in my arms this morning, the guy that I had shown more affection to than anyone else, the guy that had possessed my thoughts ever since I ran into him at that cafe. This was the guy I liked a lot.

He finally straightened, and he had tears in his eyes. “Your face, Eren!” He wiped away the tears, still chuckling. “You looked so scared of me, and then you frickin SALUTED!” He broke into another fit of laughter. I was finally able to smile.

“Well, just take that as a complement to say that you look accurate,” I blushed. I wasn’t sure what he thought of me though. I finally asked as he calmed down. “How’s mine?” He focused his full attention on me, and the laughter died instantly. He stared at me and I could see the barely disguised awe in his face. Then he flushed, and turned his face to the side, and I assumed it was to hide his blush.

“You look...absolutely perfect...” he  mumbled out. My face burned, and I was pretty sure he didn’t mean for me to hear that. He turned his face back to me, blush contained, and said louder, “You look awesome.”

I had to turn away in order to disguise my face. I didn’t want him to see just how much that simple comment had affected me. I distracted myself by looking at my watch and...shit. “Um, we really have to go now...” I trailed off. He understood and walked past me. I’m glad he did, because then he didn’t see my crumbling from feeling when he accidentally brushed his hand against mine....or had it been an accident?

I had noticed that he had returned affection to me, and sometimes he even started it. I was pretty sure he was at least feeling something towards me...but was it even close to the level of what I felt? Probably not, I thought a bit dismally.

We got down to my Porsche and he climbed in. I followed a bit slower, contemplating my current sexual preferences. Then I got inside and drove. We filled the ride with pointless conversation, until I was able to focus on something besides seeing him in his outfit and looking so damn perfect. My excitement rose when we finally pulled onto a road and up to a gate. We drove through it and were greeted by a wonderful sight.

Rusty orange tinted jackets with different emblems on them, green capes with the Wings of Freedom, harnesses on white pants, and knee-high boots where everywhere.

We had arrived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you hate me? Yeah, I thought so.  
> I'll figure out a set date and stuff for future posting after I post the next chapter.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi and Eren arrive at the run and meet up with several people.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GAH! I HATE GOING BACK TO SCHOOL! I'm so sorry that this happened! I'm literally posting this chapter in the middle of my class. Anyway, I think I might have to do the weekly updates to keep up with homework now! You guys need to tell me what day would be best. Anyway, here is this long, grueling chapter that took forever and I am deeply sorry!
> 
> Edit: and HOLY SHIT GUYS I GOT FANART! The lovely, amazing xxDeja-Uchihaxx drew this, and it's amazing. Thank you for this beautiful thing! Go look at it!  
> http://xxdeja-uchihaxx.tumblr.com/post/112202019495/eren-levi-from-coffee-writers-xxdeja-uchihaxx

I was so excited I could barely breathe. We were finally here. The amount of people there was just perfect for me, but it still felt weird to to be around so many other people who liked War on Giants. Here, I could flaunt my true self, and it would be normal. People didn’t care.

But I was wrong. The moment we got out of the Porsche, which had already drawn attention to us, the people nearest to us stopped and stared, and by that I mean all of them. People were blinking and watching us with complete amazement. In order to make the illusion more real, I had flattened out my face into what I knew was what the Corporal always looked like, and people were whispering excitedly. I guess we both looked super accurate.

We walked to the main ticket office and Eren asked for reserved passes. The man behind the window didn’t look at us until he passed the lanyards through the window, and he froze and looked completely at a loss for words. We ignored him and walked towards the main meeting area, passes around our necks.

We were crowded, but for once I didn’t mind. My excitement was too big to care. Also probably the fact that people were gathered a respectful distance around Eren and I could also be a reason. People were taking out their phones and snapping pictures left and right. I could hear people around us who were TS-C shippers as well, because I would hear comments like, “I told you, it’s totally canon, and there’s the proof!” and, “Look! There it is, it’s real!”

I pulled my phone out of my pocket and checked the time. We still had about 10 minutes before we actually got instructions. I suddenly thought of Hanji, and what she would be doing if she knew I was here. She would be so jealous, I could picture what she’d say. “LEVI, DAMN YOU I...”

“...DIDN’T KNOW YOU WERE COMING HERE OH MY GOD!” Wait, that’s not...my train of thought is halted by an attack from a blur of red tinted brown hair in my face and I fall over. I look up at the person squealing above me and...what?

“Hanji?” I ask incredulously. She’s grinning like a maniac and she can’t stop squealing and babbling. Eren just stands off to the side, shaking with suppressed laughter. I glare at him and push Hanji off with a loud, “Tch,” and stand up. “What are you doing here?”

“I heard about this run a about a week ago and signed myself up! I would’ve signed you up, but you never responded to my calls, so I just assumed I would have to go and make you jealous, but I guess I can’t do that anymore.” She doesn’t look upset in the least. I’m about to say something else when a figure coming up behind her makes my eyes widen in disbelief.

“Erwin?” He is smiling and damn, he looks absolutely like the commander of the Survey Corps. Hanji and I were right. But...

“I thought you didn’t watch War on Giants...or any anime for that matter.” I was dumbfounded. I hadn’t been able to share my more fanboy side with him because I thought he wasn’t into that kind of stuff, and I didn’t want him to regard me less because I was such a fan. But how did he...

“Hanji recently got me into the show, and I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed it,” He said in his slow measured way, and it hit me just how much like actual characters we all looked. We were all in our outfits, and we were all acting like the characters. Hanji lightly jumped from foot to foot, her glasses strapped securely to her face, and her hair was actually up for once. Erwin stood calm and strong, a light smile on his face that matched perfectly with the commander, and I stood looking at them with a slightly annoyed facial expression and arms crossed over my chest. Eren stood slightly off to the side of me, having not yet been noticed, but that changed instantaneously.

“Wait...WHO ARE YOU, YOU PERFECT WONDERFUL CHILD?” Hanji let out a large gasp and fell to her knees at her statement. Erwin turned his attention to Eren and his eyes widened. He leaned down to me and whispered, “He looks just like the shifter!” I nodded. I would be pretty surprised about how identical he looked too, if I already didn’t know him.

Hanji leaped up and rushed to him, taking his face in her hands and squeezing it, scrunching his face in ways that for some reason made him look super cute. I forced the blush to not appear on my face as I sighed loudly and walked over to them. “Hanji, this is the friend I told you about from before. His name is-”

“Eren,” he mumbled best he could with Hanji still pinching his face. She let out a shrill shriek which made him break free and cover his ears. He’s probably too late and his ear drums are ruptured.

“AH YOU ARE THE SWEETEST AND CUTEST CHILD EVER! And, you broke through to Levi really quickly, so that isn’t something to take lightly,” she grinned at him, while he stared at him, rubbing his ears. He clearly didn’t know how to process this excitable woman who was freaking out over him.

“Um, thanks?” He looked at me for help. I took the hint and walked over to Hanji, grabbing her ponytail and turning her face towards mine. “Lay off him, Hanji. He doesn’t know what to do with you. I’m pretty sure no one does.”

She laughed and detached her hair from my grasp. “Alright. You know I’m not for scaring away coffee buddies.” She looked back at Eren, but Eren wasn’t looking at her. He was looking behind us in amazement.

“Armin?” I spun around, and sure enough, there was the blond-haired barista from our cafe, dressed up to perfection of the shifter’s best friend. He looked just as stunned. “Eren?”

Eren ran over to Armin and grabbed his shoulders, grinning excitedly. “What are you doing here?” Armin responded with just as much enthusiasm. “I’m a huge fan of the show, so I heard about this run and decided to come!” Eren groaned in an amused way. “Hell, if we’d had known about this before, then we could have set this up awhile ago!”

I was left out of it, and felt jealousy flow through me, unbidden. I let out a soft, “Tch!” and walked up to them. Armin’s eyes widened when he caught sIght of me. “God, Levi, forgive me for saying this, but you look absolutely accurate!”

“I could say the same to you too,” I responded. I turned to where Eren was standing...but he wasn’t there anymore. I spun around, becoming more and more nervous when I didn’t see him anywhere. I turned back to Armin, panic at the edge of my voice. “Did you see where Eren went?”

He was looking scared now as well. “No. Shit, he could be anywhere!” He turned around helplessly as he searched the crowd. I turned away from him, panic now filling my chest. Where was Eren? He couldn’t miss this, and I couldn’t run without him! I couldn’t-

“Levi! Armin!” His voice filled my consciousness and I was flooded with numbing relief. I turned towards the voice and saw Eren waving at us as he pulled along an asian looking chick with dark hair and the red scarf.

“Armin, Levi, I would like for you two to meet my sister,” Eren presented her proudly, extending an arm in her direction. She stood quietly with a slightly dour expression. She reminded me of what I normally looked like. But at his waving, she looked at us and gave a soft smile.

I stared at the young woman in front of me. How in the name of Chuck Norris was she related to Eren? The puzzle pieces just didn’t fit in my head. Eren’s face changed to confusion when he saw that I was visibly struggling. I fell into a fit of frustration, and said, a little louder than necessary, “But she’s asian!”

Eren stared at me in surprise, as did every person in the close vicinity. Great job, Levi, way to sound like a dead-beat racist. Then he let out a laugh and said, like it was the most obvious thing, “She’s adopted.”

And then suddenly everything made sense. It was like I was having an extraterrestrial crisis and had just figured out how everything in the world worked and how to do things properly. And it was dumb. She was adopted.

“Ah, well, yeah,” I said lamely, aware that I had made the entire meeting more awkward than desired. And what a first meeting it was. Especially for his sister. She would be seeing a lot more of me, I thought, when Eren and I started going out...oh gosh, these thoughts were running rampant.

She was giving me a hostile glare. I guess she didn’t like how racist I had just sounded. She tensed her shoulders, and for a split second, it looked like she was about to go on a full out murder rampage, starting with me, slowly and painfully. Clearly Eren recognised her stance, because he put a steady hand on her shoulder and she instantly calmed under his touch. I won’t deny that I felt a bit more than a twinge of jealousy at the way he so casually touched her.

“This is Mikasa,” he said, clearly trying to brush off the situation as if it had never happened. She put on a more friendly face and greeted people in the circle we had created. Armin looked a little overwhelmed by her presence, and the way he shook her hand shakily and stuttered out, “I-I’m Ar-Armin...” made me wonder if he had ever had any casual interaction with members of the female species. She moved her way through the circle, pausing when she reached me.

“Um...Mikasa, this is Levi,” Eren started, looking a little nervous as he said it. One of her eyebrows shot up as she stared at me. I stared right back. I wasn’t going to let her scare me. I was the only deep menacing starer here. I wasn’t giving that title up to anyone, even Eren’s sister.

“Him?” The way she said it made her sound incredulous and a bit suspicious. I raise an eyebrow in return. The way she said it, it sounded as if she had known about me before we met. But that would mean that...

“He’s talked about you,” Mikasa said, still staring at me, a calculating look in her eyes, clearly waiting for me to react surprised. I was very surprised. But I didn’t let that emotion show on my face at all. “Oh, has he?” She leaned up into my face, and I instantly hardened my look even more, feeling her pushing into my personal bubble. “He talks about you all the time...”

“Mikasa!” Eren spluttered behind her, looking very red in the face. “What did I say?” She huffed in my face, and I held my breath in disgust (her breath could be bad, and I don’t want germs in my face) as she gave me one last glare before leaning away from me. “I haven’t said anything important, Eren. Calm down. I’ll uphold our agreement.”

Agreement, huh? Agreement about what? I didn’t feel like asking. He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by all the people around us suddenly cheering. We turned to where everyone was looking, and saw an older looking man, who was clearly someone important. He had grayer hair and glasses, and a scruffed beard. He held up his hands and the crowd quieted.

“My dear friends, we are here today because of two things; we like to run, and we love War on Giants!” An affirming yell rose from the crowd. We were cheering too. Well, everyone was cheering, except for me and Mikasa. We stood in silence and just looked at the man on the stage.

“I am Darius Zackly, the creator of this race.” Something about this guy was striking familiar chords in me. I feel like I recognize him from somewhere...

“I have known and loved War on Giants ever since it first was an idea. For those of you who don’t know who exactly I am, I am the chief producer for War on Giants. As in, I am in charge of the anime itself.” Eren gasped next to me. I jumped a little, because I hadn’t realized he had come up next to me, not that I really minded. He wasn’t the only one gasping. A quick glance around me showed that some people were looking fit to drop to their knees in awe and then worship this man. To say it honestly, the thought had crossed my mind.

“I have been planning this event for a long time, and you people will get to be the first to partake in this great moment.” Now at this I gasped. We were the first? I couldn’t believe how lucky we were to get the first time of this. I could see Eren at my side, opening and closing his mouth like a fish, looking too stunned to speak.

“Now, to start. Please take the time now to look at your passes and separate into the directed groups. Garrison, you will go to the tent over there with the symbol of your squad on it. M.P’s, you will do the same with your symbol. And likewise for the Survey Corps. I will come and introduce you to the specifics of each.”

People scrambled towards their respective tents as soon as he finished speaking. I looked at the group of people around us, most who were looking at their tags. “Levi, Mikasa and I are in the Survey Corps,” Eren yelled over the sound of people yelling all around us. “Same!” Hanji yelled back, waving Erwin’s arm as well. “Me too!” Armin yelled, holding up his tag as if it was first prize.

Eren beamed. “Awesome! We’re all together! Let’s head over to the tent.” We all turned and looked for it, and Erwin spotted it first, because he was freakishly tall and could see over every head in the entire damn place. He directed us, and we soon were being pushed and crowded under the tent with everyone else. Although, there weren’t too many people here. I guess they didn’t think they could handle the extremeness of the Survey Corps. Even so, I turned disgusted looks all around me at the people pressing at me from all sides. Tch, dirty brats.

A tall blond man stepped up on a small platform at the front of the tent and yelled at us. “Attention, new recruits!” We all stared up at him in silence, before Erwin, of all people, turned to him, banged his right hand over his heart, tucking his left arm behind his back, and responding just as loudly, “Sir!” Our group decided to follow suit, all pounding our fists onto our chests and responding in unison, “Sir!”

The tall man looked and spotted Erwin and suddenly started to laugh. “Now, would you look at that! That one there has more right to be the leader of the Survey Corps than I do! In fact, all of that group right there should be the real ones in charge! They’re straight from the anime.”

Those who hadn’t noticed us before sure noticed now, and excited, hushed whispers were surrounding us, still standing there in the salute. I looked up at Erwin, and saw his face was slightly flushed from all the attention. In fact, he wasn’t the only one embarrassed about the fact. Armin was shaking and blushing, Hanji was beaming and rolling on her heels, Mikasa was looking around, a bit stunned, and Eren...

...oh god, he looked so perfect right now. He stood straight and tall, the salute firm against his chest, face determined and looking so familiar. The last rays of sun were slipping under the horizon, and I kid you not, a beam landed right on him and made him shine like the sun. I controlled my mouth and allowed my mind to gape at the glorious sight. How could he look so perfect?

Some of the whispers were becoming clear to me. “They look so perfect.” “Did they come from the anime itself?” “Maybe they got plastic surgery to look just like the characters.” “But you can see the leader of the Survey Corps, the blond. He’s so handsome!” “Yeah, and look, there’s the Corporal! Those two are perfect for each other.”

I snorted. Me and Erwin? Hell no. I was taken by someone far better, no offence to Erwin. I could never date him.

“No! It has to be the shifter and the Corporal! See, they’re even standing right next to each other!” At that comment, it became clear to me that Eren and I were standing very close to each other. As in, another inch and our arms would be touching. I hoped that his tall form’s shadow, which was covering me, was shielding my blush.

“Anyway,” the tall man at the yelled, recapturing attention, “Mr. Zackly is here and will explain things to you!” He backed off the the platform and the director stepped up. It suddenly hit me when the man shifted his glasses and held up a sheet of paper. He looked just like the judge who had run the shifter’s trial, the man who was completely in charge. I could see the irony in the situation.

“Ah, the dear Survey Corps,” he gave a look around the crowd, and stopped on us, eyebrows raising before he gave us a simple nod. Then he continued. “I hope you are excited, because the course you selected is the most challenging. I will now take the time to explain the rules to you all.”

“Your course is a special one, because you get tools. In a moment, you will all receive three glowsticks. One of them is green, and two are blue.  The green one is just a small chunky stick. It has a strip of velcro attached to it. You will put it around the front part of your harness, sticking out and loose, able to snatch off. We will give you a velcro strip to put on your harness with the glowsticks. These will be checked prior to the race, so don’t think about cheating, or you will be counted as disqualified.”

“The blue ones are longer, thicker sticks. These are your swords. You will keep ahold of these the entire time. Keep them visible.”

“Your goal is to make it through the course without being ‘killed’, and also to try to ‘kill’ as many titans as you can. Multiple professional runners have agreed to this and are dressed as titans. You will try at all costs to avoid them. They will attempt to take your green glowstick as you avoid them and the obstacles all around you. You can hit them with your blue ‘swords’ to try to keep them away.”

“The only way to get rid of a titan is to get the red glowstick that they will have attached to the back of their necks. You won’t have to worry about choking them, because they are connected only by velcro on the necks of their costumes. When they lose their glowsticks, they will return to their main post and get a new one. In this way, there will always be titans throughout the course.”

“At the end of the race, you will be checked for two things. First, if you still have your glowstick. Even if you lose yours, keep finishing the race. However, you may not attempt to take any titan’s glowsticks after you have died. Any red sticks you collected before are no longer void. The second thing you will be checked for, if you are still alive, is how many glowsticks you collected. We will count those, and at the end, we will award the top five ‘titan killers’.”

He gave a look around to the crowd, who were shifting from excitement. “I will now send you off to get your supplies. Good luck to you all.” He stepped off the platform and the tall blond man from before returned to the platform. “Ok people, the supply tent is over in this direction. Please follow me in an orderly fashion.”

People streamed out of the tent after the man. We were near the back, so we were the last people out. As we were about to follow, Eren and I were stopped by none other than...

“Mr. Zackly!” Eren practically bowed. I shook from being so close to this man. “Ah, you two are just perfect,” he complimented us. “If I had thought that anime could come into real life before, oh my that would be the day.” He looked us over, a small smile on his face. “What are your names?”

“I’m Eren, and this is Levi,” he pointed at me. I nodded and couldn’t help but let out a big smile. “Well that’s a sight I never thought I’d see,” Zackly nodded at me, an amused look on his face. “The Corporal smiling. I shall tell you a secret.” We nodded and leaned in. “It’s not just because of the Corporal’s personality that he has never smiled. It’s because we could never picture how it looked. And now I can say, I know how to make it look.”

I let out a sensitive blush. I was being used as a perfect model for the anme. Oh my god, what was happening to my life?

“Well, I should let you get your tools,” he nodded at us and he turned away. I suddenly remembered something, a question that had haunted me from the beginning. “Sir,” I called out. He turned to me and gave a questioning look. “Yes?”

“I was just wondering something,” I took a nervous breath. “Do the characters have actual names?”

He looked back at us, and if I didn’t know any better, I would’ve thought he looked sneaky. “Oh, I’ve had some ideas. Maybe soon I’ll reveal them.” He gave us a wave and walked off. Eren and I looked at each other, confused, before turning and running towards the tent.

We got our tools pretty fast. We were instructed not to crack the glowsticks until the start of the race, which would be saved for when it was dark. We got our velcro strips attached to the center of our chest, in plain view. We put the little sticks on without breaking them. We took our ‘swords’ and walked to the starting line.

The sun finally went down, and darkness fell. They were trying to make the experience more interesting and kept the lights off, so we couldn’t see any of the course. Plus, none of the glowsticks were activated, so no one could see anything in front of them. I couldn't see anyone. Were my friends nearby?

I jumped when I felt someone grab my wrist. I felt something draw close to my face and shivered when I heard Eren’s voice and his breath around the shell of my ear. “Levi, is this you? Because if it isn’t this is really awkward.”

I leaned back in that direction and whispered in what I hoped was his ear, “Yeah, it’s me.” I heard his sigh of relief and his hand slid down my wrist to intertwine with my hand. We were both holding each other’s swords in the process, but I couldn’t be concerned with that, because _holy shit_ , Eren was holding my hand.

“I’ll stick by you during the race, is that alright?” he murmured. I shivered and felt my face grow hot and was very glad that it was dark so he couldn’t see my face. “Yeah, that’s fine.” Shit, my voice was shaky.

I realized how close his mouth was to my ear when I felt his smile. “Yay.” He said with such bland enthusiasm that I had to laugh a little.

Suddenly there was a loud sound and everyone jumped. Eren squeezed my hand a little tighter as a voice came from all around us, clearly on loud speakers. “Survey Corps, activate your weapons and life.”

In near unison, there was the sound of many cracks, and blue lights filled my vision. They lit up people’s faces, determination and excitement filling them. I could see Eren next to me, and he looked at me as we cracked the sticks together that were in between our hands.

It was purely magical. Then the greens appeared everywhere around us, and we could see more of the people, and many were jogging lightly in place, prepping. I saw that Hanji and Erwin were close to my left side. Hanji looked like she had drunk several bottles of Mountain Dew; she was bouncing around, blue glowsticks swinging wildly from her hands as she swung them back and forth. Erwin stood in a slightly crouched stance, face set in determination, glowsticks held at the ready.

Armin and Mikasa were in front of us. Mikasa simply stood straight, sticks held out on either side, facing the ground. Armin was lightly bouncing on his toes, and if I could see his face, I would assume that he looked a mixture of determined and nervous.

I shot a glance at Eren, and saw that he was staring at me. He looked beautiful, the green and blue in his eyes being accented by the glowsticks he was holding, and his eyes looked like they were glowing themselves. His face was bathed in the colors, and he smiled at me, and I felt my knees grow weak. I’m not so sure I can run anymore.

“Levi?” He’s talking to me. I force myself to pay attention to his words instead of how he looks. I can see that his cheeks are darker than the rest of his face, and I realized he was blushing heavily. “Yeah?” I replied, feeling my own face grow at least just as dark.

He opened his mouth, then closed it, before opening it again, clearly trying to gather strength to say something. He finally gave an exasperated sigh and just said, “I’ll tell you after the run.”

I was disappointed, but I was willing to wait for what he wanted to say, but just barely. I nodded and he looked relieved.

A loud beeping signified that a countdown was starting. We fixed our gazes forwards, and I could picture the determination across Eren’s face, and I settled mine into a serious, focused expression. The beeping counted down, and on the second to last beep all the lights turned on, and since my eyes clear quickly, I could see the terrain spread out before us.

Then the final beep and a loud blast echoed all around, and the Survey Corps lept forward, Eren’s hand still in mine.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will go between Eren's POV for the race, and Levi's POV. The entire chapter will be all about the race.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The race. 'Nuff said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, early chapter! I think what I'm going to try is updating on Friday afternoons after school and then posting another chapter either on Saturday or Sunday. And here I am now, being the responsible, studious person I am and typing this up instead of doing my homework. *sigh*  
> This whole chapter splits between Levi's POV and Eren's POV multiple times, so hopefully you guys like it.

Levi POV

 

Through the mass of bodies I could see the course that was spread before us. Within the first few meters were several low hurdles and some caged ramps. I couldn't see past that because beyond those first few meters, the whole course was covered in fog.

Eren and I ran the first few meters together. He was mostly pulling me along, so we went wherever he pulled us. We jumped over the first hurdles together, staring straight ahead and we clasped hands tighter while in midair. The whole experience was heightened due to the fact that the theme song from the first half of War on Giants was being blasted from the loudspeakers.

We were technically herded towards a cage ramp due to all the people who were still pushing us everywhere. We rushed up the ramp together, and in that moment that we were at the top before jumping off, I noted that now I could see a little bit in front of us through the fog, and I had seen a curve to the right in our near future.

And after that curve was a splattering of little red lights. Titans.

We ran through the curve, and if I wasn’t so focused on keeping his hand in mine, I would’ve noticed that some people had run straight into the fence that was surrounding the course. Idiots.

We ran straight forward and the fog cleared a little bit, so we could see more clearly. Good thing too, or else I would’ve run straight into my first titan. I saw the red light before I saw the silhouette and knew when the light disappeared that the figure had turned around to face us. Well, screw that. Here, I was the Corporal himself, and I wasn’t about to let the first damn titan I saw take me out. With regret I yanked my hand and sword out of Eren’s and with a whirl, I swung my blue blades down in a blur against the back of the runner’s neck.

I was surprised to see the red light tumble off and land directly in front of me.

I let that distract me for just a moment before I raced on, but not before leaning down and grabbing it as I ran on. I jogged on and then Eren was back at my side, and through the light fog I could see his amazed expression. “What?” he mouthed, and I gave him a smirk before running slightly in front of him.

I should probably mention at this time that before he had died, my dad had gotten me into ninjutsu and tae kwon do, so I was basically a 20-year-old ninja. I had experience with swords and weapons, so this was actually easy for me concerning where to hit and such.

I raced past another and whacked him on the neck, cleaving his glowstick from him. I caught this one and pulled the string around my neck, adding to the first one. I think they should’ve mentioned that fact that the titan’s glowsticks had strings so we could wear them and not have to hold them while running.

I felt a presence near my side again and I stole a quick glance to confirm that it was Eren. He had a glowstick around his neck too. Good to see he’s getting shit done.

I looked into the area ahead and noticed that we were pretty much the first people there, so all the titans were out and looking for us directly. I licked my lips. Ooh boy, a challenge.

A group congealed in front of us and I narrowed my eyes as I let a determined smirk cross my face, and then I ran straight at them.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eren POV

 

How could Levi be anymore amazing and sexy?

I hadn’t really been thinking when I grabbed the wrist of the person next to me and hoped it was Levi. I breathed out a silent thanks to the Good Luck gods or whoever was in charge when it turned out to be him. He didn’t see it, but when he leaned back to me and responded, his mouth ended up nearly touching the front of my face, right near my lips.

I had cautiously slid my hand down to grab his and I sent up another thank you when he didn’t let go. Our glowsticks were clasped between our hands, and I couldn’t help but enjoy the way our hands fit. Even with the thick sticks pushing apart the palms, our fingers linked in the most perfect way.

When the first of the glowsticks had lit up, I looked at him, and as his face became more and more clear from the light, I felt a heavy thump in my chest. His face was shadowed in just the way to make him look serious but also incredibly sexy. He stared me in the eye and we cracked our sticks with a flip of our wrists. We both activated our other glowsticks, breaking eye contact for those few moments to focus on placing them in the right places. Then I looked at him before he finally looked back up at me.

Oh my god...his face. The blue accented his sharp eyes and bounced off of them, making them look like stars in the darkness around us. They shone with such beauty that I wanted to cherish. It was then that I realized that when his eyes shone with concealed excitement that his silver was not only brightened, but that little blue undertones around the pupil appeared. I was going to go weak.

I had to tell him. I had to let him know how I felt. I couldn’t keep it in anymore. I was about to speak when the first beeps started. I promised to tell him after the race, my heart crashing around my rib cage like a cat on catnip. I could see confusion dust his features, along with...maybe...disappointment? But he agreed, and I was able to prolong my confession a little longer.

He hadn’t let go of my hand when the race started. I was a bit nervous that I was being too rough when I was forced to pull him places, but he hadn’t seemed to mind. The music blasting around us made the whole situation that much more dramatic, and I could feel an adrenaline rush flow through me, a type that I had only felt a few times before; the type where people looked at me afterwards with awe and a bit of nervousness when they saw me run a mile in under four minutes, or when I had lifted a thick lamp post off of a car with ease during a massive storm, mostly by myself. I could scare people.

I could see when we reached the top of the ramp that we were about to encounter the first group of titans. We landed and basically were in the front by the time we were rounding the curve. I saw out of the corner of my eye that through the mist around us that there was a titan right in front of Levi. I was about to say something, maybe squeeze his hand in warning-

Wait, where was his hand? I realized that it had be yanked out my my grip and then my eyes nearly popped out of my head when I caught sight of his silhouette.

His dark shadow spun around with his blue glowsticks a thick blur and I saw a quick slash and then the red glowstick fly off gracefully a few feet in front of us. The whole thing had happened in under a second.

Holy shit. Levi had just gone full on ninja on me. No, scratch that...

Levi had gone full on Corporal.

I didn’t doubt at all that Levi and the Corporal were the same now. The way Levi moved mirrored the Corporal’s movements, and when he swung his blades in a circle I had a deja vu moment and almost thought that it was his body, rolling up the female-form’s arm.

I caught up to him and saw that he had looped the string around his neck and was proudly displaying the red stick against his neck. He shot me a glance, and I still had a stunned look as I mouthed, “What?” to him. He gave me a smirk and damn, if it wasn’t one of the sexiest faces I’ve ever seen on a person. He looked ahead again and now as I steeled my gaze forward I saw that there were two figures  with red lights in front of both of us.

Mine didn’t see it coming, so I simply hit him with the blade and slapped the stick to the ground. It was an easy “kill”, but it was still a point, so I looped it around my neck and felt a flush of pride fill me. I rejoined with Levi again and saw the second stick bouncing against his chest. Damn him and his ability to be his exact, sexy character.

We looked and saw that there was a group of red lights and figures gathering in front of us, and I felt a jolt of excitement go through me. I could take these guys.

Now would probably be a good time to say that I had taken gymnastics and karate for the past seven years, so I was prepared for this. I had never told Levi though. I had wanted to impress him.

I was slightly surprised when he bolted in front of me and headed straight for them. As was to be expected. But I wasn’t about to let him take all the glory. Boosting myself a bit, I overtook him and reached the group, who all surrounded me in a moment.

Under normal circumstances, anyone else (besides me and Levi) would’ve been titan kill by now, but my reflexes allowed me to sense where they were coming from. I whacked away hands that grasped for me and let my instincts take over, slashing and hacking away at just the right places.

There were seven titans around me, but I slashed off three glowsticks with ease. I felt an arm sneak around my chest before I could react to it, and shit, was I going to lose already?

But then another blue streak flew in front of me and smacked the hand away. I shot a glanced up and followed the hand to see Levi on the other end, a determined look plastered to his face.

“Watch it, Jaeger,” I heard him say, and for some reason hearing him say my last name like that gave me a thrill, “I don’t need to be watching out for your ass the whole time.” I could hear the hidden smile in his words though, so I knew, or rather hoped, that that meant that he didn’t mind too much. I nodded and continued fighting.

In the next few seconds all seven were dispatched and returning to their posts for more glowsticks. Levi and I swung our blades in a passing threat and rushed to pick up our glowsticks. I was glad that we were both agreeing to be fair about this and we both grabbed the amount of sticks that we had each taken ourselves. We straightened and shot each other a look before running forward again into the mist and towards the tiny pulses of red light.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Levi POV

Holy shit, Eren was the most amazing and sexy thing to hit this planet.

I had been surprised when he ran in front of me, and I wanted to call him out on his stupidity when the titan’s instantly circled him. He was on a suicide mission.

But in the split second it had taken me to reach them, I knew I was dead wrong. He was a whirl of controlled energy, his moves fluid and controlled. If I hadn’t known better, I would say that he had had some sort of training. His blades clefted three glowsticks off and I could see them fly lazily into the air, almost as if they were in a different speed than the rest of him.

I saw the titan reach around his middle and about to grab at his chest, but I wasn’t about to let that happen. I slashed one of my swords down and smacked the hands away, apparently hard enough to really hurt, because I caught a split second view of the runner jerking away to clutch his hand to his chest. Whoops. The other sword cut off his stick.

The other three backed off for a moment from surprise, and Eren’s eyes drifted up my glowstick and to my face. I had to control myself when I saw his face. He was flushed, but determined, and his eyes were hard and shining. He was easily the sexiest thing I had ever seen.

“Watch it, Jaeger,” I said, pointing my sword into his face, illuminating it with it’s glow. “I don’t need to be watching out for your ass the whole time.” I inwardly let out a smug smile. I really didn’t care. In fact, I would definitely be watching out for that ass of his; that sexy, tight, plush looking-ok, not now.

He nodded and we stood back to back. The other three had regained their courage and lept at us.

We took them down in a couple seconds. I couldn’t see him, but I could feel his moves behind me and knew he was delivering well placed strokes. WE swung our swords around as they walked off, and then before other’s could reach them leaned down and grabbed our number of sticks.

We rose and looked at each other before turning and running forward towards more red glows. He ran forward, swords held out diagonally behind him, charging forward, and I copied suite.

I didn’t realize how far ahead we were until the moment before we reached the group. All the other runners were far behind us, apparently still stuck around the titan’s behind us. But while that was good, that meant that all the titans would be going for us first.

Eren and I charged into the group with loud yells. We swung our blades with lightning speeds and red sticks went flying. It wasn’t until I was about to take down a titan and another blade cut it off before me that I realized that we weren’t alone anymore.

I had looked up, expecting it to be Eren, but instead I was greeted by...his sister. She shot me a look, and then quickly bent down and retrieved the stick, adding it to her collection. From what I could see, she had at least four. Now five.

I shot looks around and saw with pleasant surprise that our entire group were in front and fighting well. I caught a glimpse of Hanji swinging her blades, a crazy expression on her face as she let out a crazed yell. I also saw Erwin and Armin tag team and take down four titans that had surrounded them. I wasn’t about to be undone, so I ignored them and just focused on getting as many of those damn sticks as I could.

I never really focused on anyone else; I just ran, slashed, bent down and retrieved, then repeated for a long time. I didn’t take into account the noises I made, and my subconscious must’ve realized that it was me who was making the grunts and roars that I kept on hearing. I would even turn around and run back to take out more. I ran into a group of people I didn’t know who were trapped and dispatched all the titans, slapping one kids hand away from one of my sticks as I collected them all and then ran back to the rest of the group.

We finally had taken down all of the titans in that area, who were all sprinting back to their stations to restock before the other runners came through. I caught sight of Eren and ran over to him, breathing a little heavily. He turned to me and I caught sight of the large chain of glowsticks around his neck. Peaking out from under them all was his green stick.

I saw his eyes widen as he looked at my own heavily decorated chest. I had lost count awhile ago, but I think I was somewhere in the upper twenties. I snorted and grabbed his hand without thinking, and his startled eyes shot from my chest to my face.

“Oi, come on, Eren. We need to go.” I yanked him hard and we ran forward, the rest of the group following. I took a quick glance backwards and after surveying the other’s chests (ew, not like a pervy way) I was satisfied to see that Eren and I had the largest amount of sticks.

Suddenly we raced past a sign. It was a “You Are Here” sign on a monitor, and it displayed an arrow where we were and I could see that the end of the race was near. I could also see our time on the screen. It had felt like we hadn’t been going for long, but apparently we had been running and fighting for more than a half hour. Woah.

The drawing of the course shown on-screen showed that we would be running straight for another few meters, then we would make a sharp left turn and come into a thin but long stretch that would lead us to a wall we had to climb over in order to reach the end. It also had many pulsing lights on it showing just how many titans there were in that area. Not getting caught would be tricky.

I looked at Eren after we passed the sign, and he looked at me, and a determined grin covered his face and my heart started beating harder than before, if that was even possible. He reached out a hand as we neared that final turn, and without hesitation, I grabbed it, and we  turned together.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eren POV

We raced around the bend, Levi’s hand once again in mine, and I felt more confident than I had ever felt before. Probably because I had Levi there with me, and I knew in my entire being that I couldn’t fail.

The past thinned out by a massive amount; so much so that if it had been Levi, Armin and I standing across with our arms outstretched, we would be over the fence.

I saw the first few titans stumble out of the mist towards us, and I felt Levi grasp my hand tighter and that’s when I realized that _holy shit, he wasn’t planning on letting go._

This was a bad idea, but I didn’t care, so I squeezed back and we charged together, him being the right-hand sword and me being the left one. Thank all that was pure and holy that I was just as good with my left hand as my right.

And we became one being. We worked in perfect tandem, his sword blocking a lunge to both of us while I hacked off a stick, and vice versa. We continually dropped hands to grab our sticks, but as soon as they were safely around our necks we were clasping hands again. We yells war-sounding cries, well, actually I mostly did those. He would give off manly grunts and other sounds that if I wasn’t in this kind of situation would be making my pants a lot tighter feeling around the crotch area.

Since we were in the front, all the titans tried for us first. We ducked under some, leaving them for the others. I could see the wall, and since at that moment our hands were joined I squeezed it and pointed. He squeezed back as he sliced off another stick and quickly retrieved it.

We were running so fast we nearly collided with the wall. I couldn’t believe that our head-on assault had worked. We were through, and we still had our green sticks. I looked at him and detached my hand, heart rushing faster when he shot me an almost pouting glance. I pointed up the wall and we started climbing side by side.

It was basically a shorter version of a rock climbing wall, and there were ropes to climb up on. As soon as we touched the ropes a slew of people dressed as titans ran out and grabbed for us. Ah, another test. When you were exhausted from the run and fighting, and then you had to climb a wall, it was nearly easy pickings for the titans. But we weren’t to be taken.

Levi and I scrambled up the wall and reached the top, him throwing his arms over the rim a second before I did. We slung our legs over and landed on our rears and were instantly surrounded by people who scanned us and then grabbed our green sticks off our chests, taking our tags off and reading them before typing them into a computer.

I looked up at a screen which suddenly lit up next to us, and I saw a number board. The numbers flashed for a moment, and then Levi’s name and mine appeared on the screen as well as our times. Levi’s name was first on the slot. Shit. He had beaten me by a split instant. But I was too tired to care.

I shot him a look and he looked back, surprisingly panting quietly. I was dying over here, thanks. He finally took of his normal mask and I saw a slight exhausted smile that made my tired heart flutter widely.

He crawled over to me, and for a moment we looked over the wall together. Our group was fighting the titans as the base of the wall, trying to fight their way up. It looked like they wouldn’t be able to get up for another 20 seconds at least. I looked at him, and stared at his face. From the side I could see that his face was slightly shiny from sweat and it only served to make him look even more magical and very, very sexy. He looked at me, and then stood, pulling me up with him. We were directed down some stairs and I stumbled, but he caught me and holy shit, he was strong, even though he had just run that damn long course.

We reached the next people at the bottom, who asked us to take off our red sticks. I looked at Levi’s. He looked like he was equal with me, but maybe slightly under. I glowed, not just literally, at the thought of beating him. He noticed my face, and I gave a smirk, showing off my massive amount of red sticks. I didn’t understand why he suddenly smirked back until he shifted the edges of his cape to expose the undersides of his arms and-

-that smug, sexy son of a bitch. I gawked as he slid at least 20 more glowsticks off of his arms and handed them to the young girl who was taking and counting his sticks. I gave him a glare, and he just gave that sexy smirk back to me.

I looked at where they were counting our sticks, watching our numbers go up. We were both in the upper thirties right now. Holy shit, we took down a lot of titans. Before we could look more we were pushed off towards a station to get water.

I didn’t make it there. I felt sudden exhaustion claim me and I fell. Levi was instantly by my side, and he whispered in my ear, “Hey, you still need water dumbass. Don’t make me carry you.”

I clearly was out of it, because he had said it so sarcastically, but I thought he had meant it, so I responded weakly, “Please do.” I could feel rather than see him stiffen in surprise, but then all of a sudden he had looped an arm under my legs and under my back, and I instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck. It was nearly the opposite of our position from this morning.

Then he was walking strongly towards the water station, which was still a little ways away. He was shaking, probably from how heavy I was, and I felt a little embarrassed that he was carrying me right now. Hell, I was taller than him! I made a noise of complaint and tried to get down, but he just tightened his grip. “Not a damn chance, bright eyes. You look like you’re about to pass out, and I’m not putting you down.”

So I just let myself be wrapped in Levi’s arms, and I felt more safe than I ever have before. Plus, I liked what he had just said to me about my eyes. I curled my face under his neck, and I heard his sharp intake of breath, and I let out a small chuckle before I, and I kid you not, fell asleep curled in his arms, dead from exhaustion, but safe in the arms of the angel holding me as if I was his greatest treasure.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Cuteness! Things will get more intense next chapter, and we'll get a small run in with a certain horse-faced, short-tempered proud teenager...*wink, wink*


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi accidentally confesses to Hanji how he feels about Eren.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It feels so weird not posting more regularly, but so far this is working out. Hey! Levi gets drunk in this chapter! Don't blame me if it isn't accurate. I've never written anyone drunk before, but yeah.

Oh my god, he was sleeping in my arms.

His sleeping face was curled gently against my shoulder, and his hands had come up to grasp at my jacket collar. It was the single more adorable thing I had ever seen.

He wasn't super heavy, but I still needed to put him down, because I was pretty damn exhausted. I never really showed when I was super tired, so if I actually looked tired, it meant that my brain had finally decided that it should show off the 6 hours of sleep I’d had in the span of a week. My brain was dumb like that.

It wasn't exactly improving because of the situation. It continually kept wanting to overload because of Eren’s presence in my arms. As much as I didn't want to, I had to put him down.

I walked out to the parking lot, which was close to the tent, thank god. Using one hand, I opened the door to his Porsche (shit did he keep ANYTHING locked?) and lay him in the backseat.

I held on to the door and looked at him. He had become so much more important and amazing to me after what had just happened. I suddenly scrunched up my nose; what was it that he had wanted to tell me?

Well, shit. Now I had to wait for him to wake up to tell me. I gently closed the door, grabbing the keys out of the front of his pocket, then locking the car before the poor bastard got robbed.

I didn't realize that I was stumbling back to the tent. I stumbled right into Armin, bless him. “Hey, Armin, could you do me a huge favor?” I didn't register how tired I sounded, but he clearly noticed, as his eyebrows went up. Although, I could say the same about him. He was still breathing hard.

“Sure, Levi, what is it?” he panted out. I lifted a tired arm and pointed to Eren’s car. “Eren knocked himself out, and now he’s sleeping in the car. Could you be there when he wakes up and bring him back before they announce the winners?”

He actually brightened a bit at my words. “Yeah, no problem, Levi! I’ll grab some stuff from the tables and go now, actually.” I tried to ignore the fact that he sounded way too eager to go see Eren sleeping. That was something reserved for only me. But I didn’t let that show and I simply nodded and gave him the keys.

Now, I needed to sit down somewhere...

This is not what I meant by somewhere.

These were new white pants! Why was I doing this? I was struggling to understand what was happening.

Ok, yeah I was a little bit drunk. For some reason the people in the tent had decided that after a long, stimulating, exhilarating run that you needed to have everyone tripping up even more.

Either way, Hanji had jumped up and grabbed a shit ton of cups of beer, giggling and telling us that she had said that she was grabbing beers for a lot of people, and they had believed her, those idiotic brats.

About Hanji when it comes to beer; no matter how much you protest, or whine, or avoid it like the plague, she will somehow get you to drink as much as she wants you to.

I’ve only gotten drunk twice, and both times I had only ended up being a bit buzzed, but now, combined with the exhaustion of the race, some tiny part of my brain realized that I was a bit more than buzzed at this point.

I finished my current plastic cup and put it into the pile at my side, which consisted of currently six cups. Well, now seven. My ass was pressed against the firm ground, but it wasn’t grass, it was a slab of dirt where Hanji had decided to park us, so I was sure that I would be trying to hide my ass from view after I stood up.

“So,” Hanji giggled, swirling her cup around in her fingers. “Someone hasn’t spilled on how you and mister shifter got so close, or got here!” She nudged the only other person in our circle of three, which was Erwin. He gave an only slightly exaggerated nod, but for him that was basically the equivalent of waving his hands in the air, screaming out that he was drunk.

I sighed and let the words tumble out of my mouth unconsciously. “Well, we’ve been hanging out a ton, and then he asked me, and then we drove here, and then I was his boyfriend for a little bit...” My mouth really had no filter or thought process when I was drunk apparently.

Hanji let out a long annoying squeal. “DEEEEETAILS, LEVI!” Even Erwin looked a bit surprised at me.

“These stupid blonde chicks tried to get him to ditch me and party with them, but he said he was my boyfriend and kissed me to chase them off,” I said, slurring as I leaned backwards, cup number eight in hand.

“YOU TWO KISSED?” Hanji screeched, and people looked over at us, but then faces melted into understanding when they saw just how drunk we were all acting. She giggled insanely and leaned over, playfully slapping my knee which was sticking out to the side. “It’s too fabulous, Levi.”

“Shitty glasses, you’re too quick to assume,” I groaned. “Just on the cheek.” I rubbed the exact spot for emphasis.

“How do you feel about him, Levi?” Erwin spoke up. He seemed to be the only one able to ask serious questions while drunk. I let myself think on that, lolling my head around in a lazy circle behind me.

“He’s gorgeous,” I breathed out suddenly, and then I seemed to catch a tiny bit of my senses, because I slapped both hands over my mouth.

One of the most stupid-ass decisions I’ve ever made, to be sure. In that process of moving my hands, I practically threw my half-full cup into the air and it flipped over in such a way that it hit all of us with a couple big splotches.

Erwin spluttered and wiped furiously at his jacket, I threw my hands down and shook on the ground like a fish, freaking out at the splotches on my cape. I could only thank whoever out there that nothing had gotten on my pants or especially my cravat. Hanji just sat there and laughed at us, even though she was the one who was the most soaked.

“Well, Levi, can we say you’ve officially found yourself to be of the ‘Eren’ sexual preference?” Hanji joked. I drunkenly tried to slap her, but ended up hitting her shoulder, missing her face by a mile.

“Screw you, Hanji,” I mumbled. Erwin laughed and leaned forward, as if telling a secret. “It really is fine, Levi. I mean, I’m gay, so it doesn’t really matter.” I reeled a tiny bit backwards, staring at him incredulously. “What? I never knew that.” He just shrugged and nodded.

“Anyway,” Hanji waved her hands in my face, recapturing my minimal amount of remaining attention. “So you like him? Just how much.” I thought for a moment, then slung my arms out as wide as I could, and then slurred out, “This much.”

“Awwww...” Hanji clapped her hands and Erwin grinned his soft grin. I was red in the face from the mixture of embarrassment and drunkenness, but I didn’t care right now. I let my arms drop to my sides and I let out a small giggle. “Yeah, he’s really, REALLY hot,” I stumbled on, not thinking. “He’s really sexy when he sleeps, and he...”

“YOU TWO SLEPT TOGETHER? LEVI YOU LIAR!” Hanji yelled, grinning as if she had known all along. I let out a melodramatic sigh and I turned blurred eyes on her. “Again, too quick to assume, glasses. There was only one bed. We didn’t do anything.”

“Wait, Levi, how long have you wanted to kiss Eren?” Erwin asked suddenly, a contemplative look on his face. I looked at him in surprise and then I thought about that. I thought for a minute or so before I realized that I had wanted to kiss him a while ago. I had first wanted to when I was over at his apartment.

“Um, basically since we met...” I sighed and reached for another cup. I needed another drink. But before the rim touched my lips, Armin came huffing back and hit my shoulder, splashing it all over my face. I swore and turned back at him. “What?”

“The scores are about to go up, and I can’t wake Eren up. But he keeps moaning for you...” he said, sounding embarrassed about the whole thing.

I was suddenly more attentive. Eren was moaning...for me? Hanji let out a cackle and said, “Welp, I think that someone is having a wet dream about a certain sour midget.” I blushed at her accusation and turned to her. “Shut it, four eyes. It’s probably just a normal dream.”

“With you in it?” Erwin looked at me. “And him moaning your name? Pretty sure someone has feelings for you as well.” I blanched, remembering that Armin was still there, and that he had heard the whole thing. I looked up at him, scared, but I saw him laugh and say, “Naw, I realized it after the first week. Those two are infatuated.”

I was startled. Was I infatuated? Was HE infatuated? Was it really that obvious to everyone else? Huh.

“Anyway, I was thinking, that since he’s moaning to YOUR name, and I can’t wake him up, that you should try?” Armin looked at me hopefully. I sighed, but I wasn’t about to miss the chance of hearing Eren moan for me...whew, how erotic.

“Sure,” I said as I stood and nearly fell over. I stumbled out of the tent, face going a deeper red when Hanji called after me, “Don’t get too frisky in there; the winners will be announced soon!”

I stumbled into the parking lot, blurred vision making it hard to see his car. But then I saw it, and I walked over to it. I didn’t make it there before I had to run over to a patch of grass as I heaved up all seven cups of beer I had drunk in the past half-hour.

I could barely hold my alcohol past a certain level, but once I had thrown up, I recovered pretty quickly, and had about two hours before the hangover really came. A blessing that came after a curse, I guess.

Once I was done heaving, I wiped my mouth, and now I could see the Porsche more clearly. I walked to it and, taking out the keys, unlocked it and opened the door.

Eren was curled up in the backseat, and he was slightly rolling around. Huh. I’d never seen someone sleep like that. But then he whispered it, “Levi,” and I realized it.

Holy shit, Armin had been right. He WAS moaning for me.  It sounded weird, hearing my name come from someone like that, as if it was a prayer. I shook my head. I had to make this quick, because I was still technically drunk, or else I would forget why I had come and just stare at him, and we would miss the announcement.

“Eren...” I shoved him gently on his chest, and he let out another moan, containing my name. “Levi...” I shoved him harder. “Eren...Eren...”

“Eren?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, did you notice a new tag and that the rating went up? It's all because of the beginning of the next chapter... *wiggles eyebrows suggestively*...which I'm finishing and it will be out tomorrow.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The only thing that could take Eren's attention away from his wet dream is the scores that come up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, my first smut writing. Don't judge, because it's probably horrible compared to all the other smut you'll read out there. But it's humorous. Hah, humorous smut.  
> This chapter sucked to write, but the only thing that made it better was listening to the soundtrack while writing. I suggest that to all.  
> Anyway, chapter, yay! This chapter is all Eren's perspective.
> 
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
> Update for 9/12  
> Ok, so it turns out that I have this massive project to work on, as well as a big party thing all of tomorrow, so I'll have no chance to post anything! :( *cue extreme sadness...well, not extreme*  
> Either way, I'll be sure to have chapter 18 up sometime on Saturday, ok? I think it's worth the wait...;)

The bed shook as I pounded into him. His back was against the sheets, and his shirt was unbuttoned, but still on. I looked at him with fire in my eyes, and I was met by his flushed, sweaty face. So damn sexy.

I thrusted harder and he let out a loud moan that just made me feel more turned on than I was now, if that was even possible, and his back arched up off the bed. I had finally hit his prostate. I bent over him, coming closer to his face, not wanting to break eye contact, and damn, I was so close, just by looking at his face. I wanted to capture that face and keep it forever...

I had an idea. “Levi,” I groaned out best I could while still pounding him. He only let out a lewd moan in response, and I slowed for a moment, and he looked at me with blurred eyes and blown pupils. “E-Eren?”

“Do you-” I panted, “-you remember my phone’s background?” He gave a tired nod, then his eyes widened when he realized what I was planning. “You...ngh...you’re not gonna...” I reached over to where my pants were still located behind me on the corner of the bed and searched through them. I felt the rectangular piece and pulled it out.

“Eren...” he gave a warning glance to me. “You shouldn’t-AH!” I sped up my thrusts, pounding into him harder than I had before. Watching him come apart under me was just so exhilarating. I could tell he was getting close, as was I.

“S-shit, Eren. You’re so-ngh-big...agh, Eren, I’m really c-close!” He cried out, arms flying to loop around my neck, his head flying back. I took a precious moment to look at my phone screen to unlock it and open the camera. Then I pushed his arms off of my neck and straightened. He looked up at me, head turned slightly sideways, mouth open, panting heavily-

*click*

Levi let out a groan that was a combination of annoyed and aroused. “Eren...you little shit...” I chuckled and threw the phone to the side and refocused all of my attention on him. I leaned my head forward until our foreheads were touching. “Levi?”

His eyes focused on mine and I couldn’t stop the slight gasp that came out of my mouth. His deep silver eyes were the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. They shone with arousal and the blown pupils made the tiny ring of silver even more noticeable. His flushed face made him look unbearably sexy, and the way his sweaty hair slightly clung to his forehead, but yet also stuck out in certain places was undeniably the most beautiful sight I’d ever seen.

“Levi...” I groaned softly. “You’re seriously beautiful.” He gave me a smile, and I would call it shy, and it was so damn cute that it spurred me on. Now I could completely focus.

I gave a slight thrust, and Levi’s eyes widened, and as I thrust again, but harder, he let out a moan and threw his hands back around my neck. My hands were placed on either side of his face and I pounded more deeply into him, hitting his prostate over and over again. I groaned and his breath came in short heavy bursts, and the loud moaning coming from him was becoming unbearable. His grip on my neck tightened, and his back came off the mattress, his head lolled back.

“E-Eren! I’m seriously about to cum!” He stuttered out, and my only response was using my biggest bursts of energy to drive into him as I leaned down towards his ear and purred into it,

“Do it, Levi. Come.”

He was babbling my name, over and over again, becoming louder and louder. He lifted up into me, so our chests were touching, and clawed his hands down my back, and then I heard a final scream come from behind me, where his face was. “EREN! SHIT!” and he stiffened as he came all over our pressed stomachs and chests.

That was it for me. I was about to come too. I used my energy to pound relentlessly, and he kept on babbling, and he had fallen back on the bed, so I could look at him, and he moaned and shook and cried out for me, and shit I was about to cum. I started to cry out too, his name becoming my mantra.

“Levi...Levi-” I panted out, and he responded to me.

“Eren. Eren...”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Eren...Eren, EREN?”

My eyes shot open and the first thing I saw was Levi’s face. It was dark, so I couldn't really tell what it looked like. But my mind still placed him in that situation, and my face went so dark I’m pretty sure I was completely camouflaged.

That was the most erotic dream I’d ever had. I had had a fair amount of dreams with Levi in them, but they were all low key compared to that one. I don’t think I can look at my phone screen the same way ever again. Like EVER. AGAIN.

“Um, hi Levi,” I mumbled. I couldn’t look him in the face. He breathed over my face and that’s when I realized that he was drunk.

“You were moaning,” he mumbled out in return, his face slightly coming into view, and then I saw that his face was coated heavily in blush. He always looked so cute when he blushed, and the harder it was, the more adorable it seemed. So right now, as he looked over to the side, face completely flushed and slightly drunk, he looked so cute that if I was in private I would’ve squealed. But I stopped myself. Just barely.

“And you’re drunk,” I responded cautiously, looking him over and trying to keep my feelings in check. He let out a snort, and then suddenly fell on top of me. I think it was accidental. I let out a stupid squeak when he hit me.

“Whoops,” he mumbled against my chest, and he shakily pushed himself off, and I restrained my arms from looping around him and yanking him back on top of me. He shook his head, and then said, “The scores are about to come up, so I came to get you.”

Oh shit, the scores! I scrambled past him and landed flat on my face outside for all my trouble. He got out a little more slowly, but it seemed he was recovering quickly from his drunkenness.

He leaned down and offered a hand, and I took it gratefully. Then as we started walking back to the larger group, he kept his hand in mine. I have to say that that made my heart flutter at the touch. During the race, I had assumed that he held on to me just because of the spur of the moment, but now he was holding it on his own terms...granted that he was still slightly buzzed, but still.

We got into the large group and walked up to the main scoreboard. The scores were there, but no names. I guess to keep in the suspense. We walked to near the front, near the six platforms, one for the person awarding the top five places, and the other five for the winners.

There was restless talking as we got to our spot. By spot, I mean where we saw Hanji, Erwin, Armin, and my sister. They waved us over and we walked to them, Armin giving me a look-a knowing look?-before turning his gaze to the stage where none other than Darius Zackly had just stepped up.

“Ah, Survey Corps,” he greeted warmly. “You all did magnificent for this run!” The crowd clapped in approval and he held up a hand. “Now I know you all want to know who the top finalists are, so we’ll get right to it.” He reached out and a man placed a box into his hands. The crowd literally leaned forwards as he opened the box.

“We will go from 5th to first, as customary,” he joked. The crowd shifted, looking anxious.

“Now, for 5th place, we have a bit of a peculiar problem, because we have a tie!” A gasp rose from the crowd and he nodded. “It’s technically 5th and 6th, because the 6th place person finished after the 5th place person, but since they killed the same number of titans, they will both be awarded.” People leaned forward again, anxious to learn who the two were.

“In 6th place,” he said into the microphone in front of him, shifting his glasses as he looked at the sheet of paper in front of him, “with 32 kills, is Jean Kirschtein.”

People quickly searched the crowd for a face, resting on a slightly on the taller side teen with a longer face making him look suspiciously like a horse. He looked stunned, but gathered his strength and walked forward, people making a path for him. He got up onto the stage and stepped awkwardly off to the side before Zackly said, “It’s ok, technically you’re still 5th, so you can step up on that spot.” The teen nodded, still looking scared, and stepped up on the spot, standing to the side, leaving space for the other person with whom he would be sharing his title.

“In 5th place, also with 32 kills, Hanji Zoe,” he read next. We all whirled to look at her, and her face was so lit up by excitement its an honest wonder that she didn’t squeal right there. But she raced to the front and leaped up on the stage, jumping up to her spot next to the other boy, Jean. She stood there, shivering with excitement, looking at us happily.

“In 4th place, with 39 kills, is Erwin Smith.” Again, our faces turned to him, his face reflecting honest surprise before calming it into the Commander look that he had perfected, and he strode to the stage, the crowd parting for him in a respectful lane, several saluting him. I wanted to snort, but I was saluting too, the moment looking too much like a scene out of the anime.

“Now, these next numbers will astound you,” Zackly promised into the microphone, and people looked in excitement at him.

“3rd place, with 50 kills, is Mikasa Ackerman-Jaeger.” I whirled around to look at my sister. Since when did she have time to kill all those titans? She looked at me, and I responded with a wide smile and clasped her hand. “Mikasa, that’s awesome!” She gave me a soft smile, but for her, that was huge. She walked to the podium and people gave her space. My gaze hardened a bit when I saw that Jean kid stare open mouthed at my sister as she took her place on the 3rd podium. Then I heard it.

“2nd place, Eren Jaeger.” And then I was stunned. Wait, was that...me? Glances looked at me, and I could barely find it in me to move. I had been nominated? I barely heard what he said next. “...with 52 kills.” A gasp flew through the crowd and I was completely nullified; rooted to the spot until I felt a nudge. I looked down to see Levi pushing me forwards. “Get up there, brat, you’re only embarrassing yourself.”

I nodded, then walked forward on shaky legs, people again clearing a path, but this time for me. I nearly stumbled fromt the shock, but managed to make it up to the front and, as if I were in a dream, I stepped up onto the second platform. I felt disoriented, and my mind wasn’t working. But then everything cleared as Darius Zackly announced the first place person, and my heart pounded into my chest.

“And the first place winner, with 67 kills,” he gave it a moment for the gasps of shock to travel through the crowd before saying dramatically, “is Levi Ackerman.”

My thoughts suddenly cleared as my mind processed this information, and I stared at him in the crowd, surprise evident on his face. But it was only there for a split instant, and then his face hardened into the look of his double, and a circle grew around the Corporal as he stood there for a moment, and then took solid steps forward, the crowd completely silent as he walked up to the stage. He climbed the steps, and then walked to the first place podium, and taking a moment, finally stepped on it, his back to the crowd. Then he slowly turned to the crowd, and holy shit, was that a dramatic hair flip? Normally that never looked good with anyone, especially pre pubescent teenage boys, but damn, it worked with him, and my heart pounded against my chest.

The crowd was silent for a moment longer, before it erupted in cheers that pretty much defened me. I’m serious, after the initial blast, every sound became fuzzy. All I could think was a mixture of three things: _I’m second_ , along with, _holy shit, Levi’s so sexy_ , and finally, _Levi’s an Ackerman_? How had I missed that fact when I signed him up? Then again, when I had, all I did was send in his first name and address, so I guess that’s where that came from.

I nearly missed the person signaling for me to bend down so that the medal could be placed around my neck. I blinked to clear my eyes and bent down, feeling the strap lay across my neck, and I felt pride bubble up in my chest. I rose again and a small stack of papers were put into my hand, but I was too out of it to see what they were.

I had to actually look up to see Levi receiving his medal. His face was hardened, but his eyes showed his excitement, those blue undertones showing up again, and damn, but it was a beautiful sight.

He rose again, and we were applauded again, and I felt happiness rise in me. I was happy for several reasons. I was up here, I was being admired, and most importantly,

I was up here with the man I liked. This day couldn’t have gotten more perfect. I cautiously reached out and bumped my hand onto his upper thigh by accident, but he wasn’t looking at my blushing embarrassed face when he reached down and grabbed my hand, displaying proudly for everyone.

Holy shit, I had to tell him soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Had fun with that? Hopefully. Don't hate me.  
> 


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren and Levi have a feelings reveal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Am I shit? Yes, I am. I meant to post this yesterday, but then...things happened. I know you guys have been waiting extra long for this, so feel free to hate or whatever...wait, don't do that. I hope this chapter helps. Something special happens at the end...:)  
> Plus, we're back to Levi's POV.  
> Ooh! One more thing. If you want to post anything about this story, I created a tag on tumblr, under #fic:coffeewriters, so if you want, you can post there, and I'll check it.

 

I felt like I was in a dream.

Here I was, in the first place spot, holding Eren’s hand in mine, and being up here with all these important people in my life. Well, besides the horse over there. Even Mikasa was getting up there on my scale of importance. She had to, because she was Eren’s sister, but also because of her name.

Ackerman, huh?

I thought that everyone on that side of my family was gone. But maybe she was that one cousin whose parents were killed in that hit and run accident about 9ish years ago. I had only heard about it vaguely.

But now wasn’t the time to think about that. I was happy; happier than I’d been in awhile, and it was all thanks to Eren. I couldn’t think about anything but him, and with his hand in mine, as we stood before everyone, I felt the overwhelming desire to do something.

I couldn’t take it. I had to tell him.

 

We were finally let off the stage, and I kept my hand in Eren’s. People looked at us with respect, and I drank it all in.

I pulled Eren over to the rest of the group, where everyone had met up again. Hanji was leaping up and down, her medal bouncing across her neck. Erwin stood proud and tall, and Mikasa looked pleased.

When she saw us, Hanji let out another loud squeal and ran over to us, picking me up and attempting to do the same to Eren when she hugged us. “You guys were so amazing!” she screamed, me still in the air.

“Glasses, I swear if you don’t put me down this instant that I will personally kill you and twerk on your grave.”

“Oh Levi, my dear midget, you can’t twerk, remember? You attempted, but it didn’t work for you!” Hanji laughed and my face turned red, remembering that Eren was right there. He was looking at me with mild curiosity, but then his face turned red. I guess he was thinking of me twerking...or attempting.

“Either way, we pretty much all made it up there!” Eren said, excited voice raising a little in pitch. I thought it sounded adorable. But then I saw Armin shy away a little, and I remembered that he he was the only one who didn't make it up on the podium.

“Oi, Armin?” He looked at me. “Don't worry too much about it. I bet you were near the placings.” He brightened up at this. “Yeah, thanks Levi.”

Just then someone fell flat on their face in our little circle. We all jumped back a little and watched as the person raised their head and looked at us with wide amber eyes.

Oh. It was the horse.

“Oh, um...shit,” the boy mumbled. Then he quickly rose and brushed off his jacket. He looked around at all of us, his gaze resting on Mikasa a little more than the others, something I noticed that Eren didn’t like from the way he stiffened next to me.

“Uh, I just...wanted to say hey, and congrats on the wins.” he stated, sounding like that wasn’t the only thing he had wanted to say. Hanji laughed and slung an arm around his shoulder, and he gave a grunt and looked at her with slight alarm.

“Don’t sweat it, place-buddy, congrats to you too!” He gave a nervous chuckle and pushed her off. A wise move, young grasshopper.

“Anyway, we should go out somewhere to celebrate,” Erwin stated. “Like, maybe go for ice cream or something?” Hanji jumped up and down again. “That sounds awesome!” We all expressed our agreement. He turned to the boy and said, “Would you like to come?”

The kid quickly turned his gaze away from Mikasa and nodded enthusiastically. I think he was only agreeing so that he could spend more time with her. It looked like he had a bad case of “I-think-I-believe-in-love-at-first-sight” disease.

“Well, then lets get ready.” Erwin turned and started towards the cars. But before everyone had walked far, Eren cleared his throat with a little nervous sound. “Um, if it’s alright, could I talk to Levi alone for a little bit before we leave?”

I looked at him with curiosity. What would he want to talk about? Maybe he was going to tell me what he wanted to before the race. Erwin looked at me and I waved my hand away, gesturing that it was alright.

I watched them walk away, Mikasa continually sending looks back at us. I finally turned my gaze to Eren and saw the heavy blush that had covered his face. He was looking at me nervously. He cleared his throat and opened his mouth.

“Uh, Levi...this is-um...really hard to say...it’s...it’s about what I was going to tell you before...”

I was interested, no doubt. He had my full attention. I realized that I was anxious to find out what he was going to say. Was he going to...confess maybe? Confess what? That he hated me? That he enjoyed our time together?

Would he confess love to me?

I was starting to blush at both the thought and the look he was giving me. His eyes were wide and glistening with an untold emotion, and it bugged me that I couldn’t place it, but the eyes were more dilated and maybe the look was...fondness? Appreciation? Something else?

“I wanted to say-” he reached forward and grabbed my hands gently, and I could feel how sweaty his palms were. Normally I would have yanked my hands away, but I was too caught up in hearing what he was about to say to me.

“I just-” he stuttered a bit, “-that I-I really-”

You know, there are times when fate, or the gods, or Obama is kind to you, and those are truly amazing days full of happiness and rainbows and marshmallows or whatever. And then there are days when demons, or the Nope gods, or titans have to come into your day and make it all shit with some stupid coincidental thing. It’s like they see your day, and say, “Ooh, look how happy that guy is, about to hear something that could totally change his life. Wouldn’t it be a shame if someone just came and-

-totally messed it all up?”

That’s how my life was at this moment.

I saw Eren get hit first, his eyes widening as he started to fall over, and then I was joining him, something hard slamming into my side. I felt all the air rush from my lungs as I hit the dirt, and I heard a loud, “Oomph!” before something, or more specifically someone, landed on top of us.

They quickly scrambled off of us and apologized rapid fire, but when we looked to see who it was, blue eyes with green rims widened and the mouth dropped open.

“Oh god...it’s you two...”

It was the writer girl from the coffee shop. What are the odds. She stared at us, her outfit wrinkled and the cape under her knee in a small patch of mud, and I reached out and freed it, my wrinkled nose expressing my annoyance at how dirty it was.

“Oh, it’s you!” Eren said, shifting so that he could get up. I rose with him, but she stayed on the ground until he held out a hand, which she took slowly and he pulled her up. She kept her gaze glued to his face the whole time, and again, just like at the cafe, I felt that jealousy creep up inside me.

“Oi,” I said, trying to draw her attention away from that beautiful face that belonged to me, “where’s that other chick?”

She suddenly looked panicked and looked around, but the stupid girl didn’t look behind her, because she froze at the sudden, “There you are, jerk!” and was suddenly thrown to the ground a second time, but this time crushed by the other girl.

Then they wrestled. They freaking wrestled in front of us. The beta girl yelled the entire time. “This is-ugh-what you get for-no don’t you dare hit me-pointing out my anime crush in front of their face! Granted I already did it to you, but that’s no excuse to do it back!” The writer was caught between making fighting noises and laughing.

I looked up at Eren. He looked back. I jerked my thumb towards where the others had left. “Tell me after we ditch the crazy ones here.” He looked absolutely deflated as he nodded and turned to head to the car.

We got to the Porsche and found everyone waiting there. Hanji stared expectantly at us, but seeing our bemused and confused faces, she looked a little...disappointed? Did she know something I didn’t?

“Alright, dipshits, where are we heading?”

We ended up going to Dairy Queen and sitting outside. We sat at a table and chatted about random shit for nearly an hour. Then suddenly Eren banged his half-finished mint cookies ‘n cream blizzard down and mumbled loudly, “I can’t take it anymore.”

He successfully had gotten the attention of every person at the table. But he made sure it wasn’t kept that way. “Everyone, leave. Now. I still need to talk to Levi. Alone.” Mikasa leaned over and put a hand on his shoulder, and Eren looked at her. I could nearly see the mental encouragement she was giving him through her eyes. But encouragement for what? Then she got up and started to walk away.

The horse kid, Jean, jumped up and followed her like a horse being led on a bridal. Then Armin rose and followed. Erwin got up slowly and gave me an encouraging look. Why did I need encouragement again? Hanji sped around the table and whispered into my ear, “If it doesn’t look like it’s going well, rest assured I will intervene.”

Like what’s going well? I was thoroughly confused now. Hanji bounded over to join Erwin, and they disappeared around a corner. It was just me and Eren again. I looked at him, and he had that same look in his eyes from before.

“So what did you want to say,” I asked. Leaning back a little and crossing my arms, I looked at him, watching a mass of emotions cross his face. He opened his mouth, then closed it, his face darkening the whole time.

“Are you alright? Your face is getting really dark,” I ventured. I thought this was going to end up interesting. I just hoped that it would end up interesting in the way I wanted.

“Well, I-uh, I mean, before, before we were interrupted, I was meaning to say that, well-” He was obviously having trouble. Then he blurted. “Are you still straight?”

I was taken aback by his question. I raised an eyebrow, but tried to not let any other emotion cross my face. I didn’t want to show how surprised I was by his question. “Um...”

Well, now how was I supposed to answer this? Was he still under the impression that I was straight? Because definitely right now, I wasn’t. I was totally into him. But how was I supposed to say that?

“I...well-I think...uh...are you?” I blurted, trying to get the attention off of me. He instantly went red and took a step back. “I-well I already said-uh...this is...”

“Oh for god’s sake,” Hanji had sprinted over to our table. She put her elbows on the table and gestured with her hands at both of us.

“Eren, Levi’s been totally crushing on you for a long time, and Levi, Eren’s totally infatuated with you, and it’s obvious to everyone that you two should get together, so just kiss already.”

She rose and took in our stunned blushing faces before adding, “That was a message from me and all the others around the corner.” She pointed, and sure enough, everyone was peeking around the wall and giggling. Armin waved at us before Hanji leaned down and grabbed our heads.

“Hurry up and kiss, or do I have to force you?” I shot a look at Eren, face the reddest it had ever been, combined from humiliation and hearing that Eren truly did have feelings for me. His face reflected that look. Hanji jerked our heads forwards, and we nearly collided. “I’m waiting,” she said.

“Well,” I finally said, voice heavy with embarrassment, “we won’t do anything with you all peeping. If we’re going to kiss,” Eren’s eyes shot to the table and his face went even a deeper red, “then we aren’t doing it with you forcing us.”

“Ah, gotcha!” Hanji said cheerfully, and she dropped our heads. I turned my face to see her sprint to where the others were, and she disappeared around the corner.

I took a deep breath and looked at Eren, and he shyly looked back at me. Our faces were still red and there was a moment of awkward silence between us. Then he took a breath and spoke quietly.

“Is that true? Do you...really have a crush on me?”

I looked into his eyes, those eyes that could disarm me with a single glance, and that were filled with hope. I took in his face, flushed and just looking so cute and full of the same emotion, that I knew that I couldn’t lie to him, and despite her being a pain in the ass about the whole thing, Hanji had just opened the perfect opportunity to tell him how I felt.

“Yeah, it’s true.”

He inhaled sharply and leaned back in his seat. He kept my gaze and then he broke out into the most stunning smile I had seen from him, and it made things happen to my heart that I was sure shouldn’t be happening.

“I-what I had been going to say, was that I really, really like you, too.” He looked at me, the fear of rejection still lingering on his face. He looked down quickly, clearly too embarrassed to see my face, and I let out a quiet sigh before getting up and walking to his side of the table. He didn’t look up as I sat down, but then at my gentle touch under his chin, his face jerked to meet mine, his eyes wide.

And our lips finally met.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally! The boys got together!


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The begining of a new adventure begins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To show how bad I feel for not posting on the schedule, I typed up chapter 19 for you guys! Two chapters in a few hours for you all! Hope you guys liked that little chapter last one :) It was about time they got together.  
> Also, I have been dumb and not given any credit to my wonderful beta at all! She has given me massive inspiration for many important parts of this story, like the run, so that idea goes to her. Thank you, amazing beta!

Only three thoughts were going through my head. One, _Eren, Eren, Eren_ ; two, _oh god, his lips are so soft_ ; and three, _this is finally happening_.

He tasted of mint and chocolate, and the way our lips were softly pressed together was even sweeter than the ice cream. His soft lips were relaxed for a moment while he was comprehending what was happening, but then they pushed lightly back, and my heart jolted in my ribcage. He was returning the kiss.

I cautiously moved my lips, and he responded in the same way. My hand unconsciously came to rest on his chest, and I shivered when I felt his hand thread gently through my undercut. He pulled me farther in, and I pushed in response.

I didn’t realize that I was literally pushing Eren down onto the bench. I didn’t realize that his back had finally stretched out on the metal and that I was laying on his chest, gently kissing him. We were still going slow, right?

In fact, I didn’t realize anything beyond those thoughts until I heard the telltale, *click* of an iPhone camera.

I jerked my head back, which was hard considering the fact that Eren’s hand was still pressing into the back of my head. He looked at me, face flushed and mouth open, slightly panting, in confusion, before as one, we turned our heads to see all of the others staring at us. Armin’s face was flushed, Mikasa had no expression change, Jean looked surprised, Erwin chuckled, and Hanji leapt lightly from foot to foot, giggling with the phone in her hand.

“Hanji...did you just-” My voice cracked slightly, and it was deeper than it normally was. What was that about? She broke out into a full out cackle and started to run. Lucky for her, I wasn’t in the mood to get out of my current location.

I did sit up a little though. Eren’s hand moved from behind my head to rest on the bend of my back. “Enjoy the show, brats?” Erwin gave that smile of his, and Armin flushed deeper, smiling while trying to hide his face. Mikasa just nodded, and that faintest of smiles crossed her face. Jean just dropped his mouth open.

“So, are you guys officially a couple now?” Mikasa asked, crossing her arms, the bemused smile never leaving her face. I looked down at Eren, and he looked back at me, and then turned to her. “Not quite yet.”

I looked at him, a little stunned. What? We confessed, and then we lightly made out, and we’re still not a couple? This was all I had been wanting for a while, and he just-

“Not until I ask him out. Then we are.” Oh, I got it. He looked back at me, and he blushed again. The blush just looked cuter when he was under me...oh boy, I’ve got to stop the fantasy now before I hear what he has to say.

“Levi, would you think it would be a good idea to go out with me?” he asked, eyes sparkling, as if it was the only thing he had wanted to say. And now I got to say the only thing I had wanted to say in response.

“Eren, is there even a question? Hell yes.” I leaned down and stole a quick kiss before sitting on him again. He looked at me, his blush returning in earnest, and then pulled me down again.

I wanted to complain that we shouldn’t be doing this in front of everyone, but the taste of him again distracted me a little bit. I barely heard Armin let out an embarrassed sigh and Erwin gently clearing his throat.

“Alright, I understand that you two are anxious to continue this little love session, but you do realize that we are both outside in public and in front of a major roadway?” Oh shit.

I broke off and looked up and saw that indeed, we were right next to a road and cars were passing us continually. Just then a car passed us and honked loudly. A few moments later another car passed and a male voice yelled out, “Yeah, get some!”

Eren groaned and sat up. I quite literally slid down his chest and ended up sitting on his lap, his arm still around my back. We made eye contact, and I realized that from this position we were nearly eye to eye. I could get used to this.

“Well hey there,” he said, smiling genuinely. I couldn’t stop the smile that came to my face and I hugged him tightly. I could do this now without being worried that Eren wouldn’t want this. I relished in the fact that I could touch him now and not worry about it.

He hugged back and then gently pushed me. “I can’t get up if you’re still sitting here.” I had an idea, and I smiled wickedly at him, and he gave me a confused look with a little cock of his head. So cute.

“Oh really?” I said, my eyes narrowed and a smug smile on my face. His eyes widened when I threw my arms around his neck and my legs splayed out for a moment before wrapping securely around his waist. My head went to his shoulder, and then I pulled it back so I was staring him in the face. “I’m going to be an octopus now,” I said in my monotone voice.

Hanji had obviously returned, because her loud laugh sounded all over the parking lot. Erwin let out a real laugh at this, and I head Armin choke on one. I turned my head to see Hanji slapping her leg, and Erwin laughing with his arms crossed and eyes closed, and Armin holding a hand over his mouth. Mikasa just smiled wider, and that Jean kid still just let his mouth hang open. Does he even know how many germs he’s probably letting into his mouth right now?

Eren choked out a little, “Ok then,” his a small voice, and then he settled his arms around my waist comfortably and securely, and then carefully rose off the bench. I hugged him tightly, making sure I wouldn’t be slipping off anytime soon, and he took a few steps forwards. Hanji stepped around him and went behind him to look at me.

“Can I just, please, take a picture from the back? Levi’s face looks so cute pressed into your shoulder, Eren.” I rose my head to complain, but stopped when Eren said, “Could you really? I want to know what he looks like.”

I pulled back and shot him a look, but he just gave me a small pout, and, aw dammit, I can’t say no to that. “Fine, but just one Hanji,” I replied, and I put my head back to where it was before. I looked at her, my mouth pressed into his shoulder, my eyes peeking over and staring at Hanji while she took the picture. She snapped at least five, if I counted right, and she leaped around to show them to Eren.

“Aww, could you send me those?” He gave her his number and then continued walking. “Wait, where are you two going?” Erwin called after us. I raised my head. Come to think of it, we were walking away from everyone. What?

“Well, Levi and I are both tired, so we’re going back to the hotel to sleep.” Eren responded, turning towards them slightly. Good thing too, because my face went dark with blush again. We were going back to the hotel to sleep? What kind of sleeping was he talking about?

I clearly wasn’t the only one thinking like this, because then Armin, of all people, called out, rather loudly, if I may add, “Alright, but just make sure not to wake up the people next door, and use protection!”

I could feel rather than see the heat radiate off of his face when he called back, shakily, “That-that’s not what I meant. We’re only sleeping, not that stuff...yet,” he added quietly, and I shivered in his arms. Oh, boy.

“Hah, alright, if you say so,” Hanji called, and since Eren had turned and started walking again, I got a perfect view of her eyebrows wiggling suggestively. Shitty glasses.

We got to the Porsche and he opened the door and leaned down, pressing my ass into the seat. “Ok, now you have to let go so that I can drive.” I regretfully retracted my arms and legs, which felt numb now that they were changing position.

I was able to finally look into his face, and I saw that it was radiant. He was clearly happy that that had happened. I was too. A choice with no regrets.

He shut the door gently and walked around to the driver’s side. When he got in and shut the door, he took a deep breath and gave me another smile, and I returned it. He held out a hand and I slid mine into it, and with the other he started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. He’s good at one handed driving, I discovered.

As we passed the group, he rolled down the window and yelled out, “Don’t stay up too late!” Hanji laughed while waving and yelled back, “Same to you!” I caught the meaning behind her words and slid down a little in my seat.

We sped out of the Dairy Queen and drove quickly down the highway. Funny, I thought that the ride back to the hotel would be full of awkward happy silence, but it wasn’t. We started in on normal conversation, but it was tainted with the happiness that we were now a couple. It was really nice that it wasn’t the least bit awkward between us. It was natural.

We finally got back to the hotel. He grabbed my hand the instant he could, and I squeezed it, happy that this could become normal. We walked through the lobby and got into the elevator. The doors shut and we both looked at each other.

It was then that I remembered a scene he had written near the beginning of his fanfiction. The corporal and the shifter had gotten into an elevator and then had a steamy make-out session which involved the shifter pulling the corporal up into a corner of the wall and grabbing his ass. I also remembered that the corporal had wrapped his arms and legs octopus style around the shifter, a lot like how I had done the same back at the Dairy Queen.

When I looked at Eren, he was blushing, and I knew that he was thinking the same thing. Elevators were never the same for people who read that fanfiction, or in his case, wrote it. And oh shit, if we wanted, we could act out that scene. Then I realized. We could act out any scene from any fanfiction we wanted to. That was a scary thought. But it also was a thought that got me excited, and not just in the mental way. Shit, my pants are getting too tight.

Unfortunately, (or fortunately?) we got to our floor before anything could happen, so we just walked down the hall  to our room and he pulled out the key. He unlocked it and pushed open the door, one hand still in mine. He only let go when he turned away to shut the door.

This room, I realized could be so much different now that we had returned as a couple. I looked back at him and he looked around the room. Then he yawned, and watching him made me yawn too.

We were both too tired to anything but sleep. Plus, I think we both didn’t want to go super fast. So this first night would be a good idea for both of us.

“We should probably just get ready for bed and get to sleep, huh?” Eren asked, his voice already becoming a little dopey with sleep. “We have a while to drive tomorrow.”

Aw shit, I forgot that we would be going home tomorrow. He saw my look and then said, “No, we aren’t going directly home, remember? You packed four days worth of clothes.” Huh. He was right. But where then were we driving?

“Where are we going, then?” I asked, already heading over to my bag and pulling out my pj pants and shirt. I wouldn’t be sleeping with these half down tonight. “You’ll see. It’s a surprise,” he said, and I looked to see a smug smile plastered on his face. “Alright, brat, let’s just get to sleep.”

We got dressed quickly and then shared the bathroom. I could tell I was tired due to the fact that instead of taking a shower I just washed my face. Disgusting, I thought to myself, but my tiredness overcame me.

Then it came to the moment. We both stood facing the two beds, and then would look between the beds and each other. What were we going to do? In my mind, it was more of a question of who would be sharing who’s bed?

Finally Eren yawned and walked to his bed, but didn’t gesture for me to follow. I felt deflated. Surely he would want to...nope, he isn’t saying anything. Despite the depressed feeling rapidly spreading through my chest, I could understand how he would want to go slowly.

I head to my own bed and after turning off the light got in. It wasn’t until a few minutes after, while we were in silence, that I heard a sleepy, “What the hell?” from the other bed, and then the light was blinding me as he switched it on.

“Levi?” I blinked and shielded my eyes as I rolled over. “What?” I dropped my hand as my eyes adjusted to the sudden light, and I took in his upset face. Shit, what did I do?

“Levi, we have a serious issue here,” and I shivered, because his voice was angry sounding, but also deep and full of...something else. And that something else, whatever it was, was making my body heat up rapidly. “Uh, yeah?” I asked, my voice slightly shaky.

“Yeah, we do.” He got out of his bed and stalked over to mine, which for some reason made me feel even warmer. What the hell was happening. He loomed over me, and then, with his face shadowed, said darkly, “The issue is that you aren’t in my bed with me.”

He aggressively ripped the sheets off of me, and I instinctively curled up as the cold air hit me. Then he leaned down and grabbed me roughly, and I kid you not, I let out a yelp slash gasp that sounded foreign to my ears. It clearly was new for him too, but he didn’t let that show as he brought me over to his bed and threw me on it.

I yelped again as I hit the sheets. Then suddenly he was on top of me, and we were staring each other in the face. I looked up at him, breathing heavily for reasons unknown, and he was glaring down at me. Was he purposely trying to turn me on? Because right now, it looks like it’s working.

He reached a hand behind him, and for a moment I thought he was about to grab me somewhere personal, but then all he did was draw the sheets up to my neck and then, his face relaxed a little, and he giggled a bit.

“You look really cute snuggled up like that.” The change in tone and action had my body a confused mess of emotions and hormones. Then in one swift move he flipped over and landed next to me, pulling his side of the sheets up to his own neck before looking at me.

We stayed that way for a moment, and then he reached out and gently stroked my cheek. I smiled and leaned into the touch. What he said next made my eyes widen in deja vu.

“Levi, seriously, you’re beautiful.”

What the hell? Was my dream coming true? This was creepy. If I remembered correctly, if I looked at his face...yep, that blush was there. Time to act.

I leaned towards him and gently kissed him. Then he pressed back gently, and just like the dream, I sighed and slid my arm around his neck.

We never got into that full make-out session that happened in the dream. We fell asleep mid-kiss, but our arms were around each other, and everything was right with the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aren't the guys so cute?  
> And did you catch the references to chapter 7 of The Intern? I thought you did.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first morning as a couple starts out as any should: ass groping and drooling over sweet things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm pretty sure this is the dumbest chapter I have ever written. And by that I mean the entire second half and ending. I accidentally poured out my feelings about food into Levi here...whoops. But hey, I hope it's entertaining!  
> Also, I am not such a social person as I may seem, and I don't have sites like Deviant Art and such, so if you guys actually see anything on there, could you tell me? I sound so pathetic right now. But yeah, dumb chapter ahead!

 

I woke up to a chest.

‘ _the hell is this_? I thought groggily. This was definitely not something I was used to. I was a lot warmer than usual too. What?

Then I remembered, and when I did, I felt a small smile creep onto my face. Eren. I was here with Eren. Eren and I had finally gotten together, and now we were sharing a bed as a couple.

I refocused my eyes and realized with a jolt that he was bare chested. I had seen him shirtless just yesterday morning, but that seemed so far away, and that encounter had been brief. Now I had the full chance to appreciate his well toned body while I was cuddled into it.

Surprisingly, he had abs. I say surprising because I hadn’t really given too much thought into the idea of him working out. I had suspected him to be a little more thin because of his general frame, but when it came down to it, he had really nice abs. Damn.

I snuggled into his chest, right up to his heartbeat. Ah, I really could get used to hearing this in the morning. It was strong and gave me a sense of comfort. It was all perfect. He was perfect.

He moved a little in his sleep and his arms came down to rest just above my ass again. Funny, this time I almost wanted his hands on my ass...ooh boy. What did that even feel like? I mean, I knew what it felt like when it was abused, since I had been hit on by both girls and guys before, and a select few of the guys would try a feel. That’s all they would get out of me too, before I would send a deserved kick into their manhoods. Good luck having kids, perverts.

But with Eren...I don’t know, I wanted to know what he would do. Maybe he was more expressive in this manner in his sleep? I decided to test.

I ever so slowly moved up his chest, scooting more towards his face. Finally my head rested just under his chin, and I could feel a tingle in my ass that told me his hands were right over it. I wanted him to touch my ass though. I wanted to feel what-

Wait a minute...what was he-my thoughts were cut short when his hands didn’t touch the desired object and rested gently onto my hips. I looked up at the bottom of his chin in confusion, as if he could see me. But then I stiffened and a jolt ran through my body as he started to gently rub my hips with his long fingers.

Well, this was certainly new. Even though my goal had been to get those fingers on my posterior, this still felt amazing. I gently pushed my hips into his touch, and he massaged them carefully. I let lose a quiet sigh and then hoped he hadn’t felt that and woken up, as his breathing still suggested that he was asleep. I shut my eyes again and allowed myself to enjoy his touch on my lower sides.

I barely registered that his fingers were slowly moving around my hips and waist. He just kept on tenderly rubbing my lower back and getting closer to my ass and I cracked an eye open so I could see his throat as he breathed steadily in and out-

 _Ooh shit_! I had to clench my teeth shut as a moan threatened to escape my lips. His hands hadn’t just touched my ass, they had fricking _clamped_ onto it. And shit it had sent pleasure straight down and up my spine. Who knew my ass was this tender?

And then I couldn’t help the slight moan that pushed through my clamped lips, because he was _kneading my ass_. Holy shit, it felt good. I shakily reached a hand to wrap around his waist and the other I left tucked onto his chest between us. I took shaky breaths. Was Eren even still asleep? He gave a particularly strong push and I arched into his chest. And I let out a full on moan that I realized the second after that I had sounded right next to his ear.

And he still didn’t wake up. How could he make me feel this while he wasn’t fully conscious? And if he was like this now, what would he be like while awake? The thought sent a bolt of energy straight down between my legs and I bit my bottom lip.

Oh god. I didn’t recognize the feelings that my body was experiencing. It was just too good. Was this a kink? Huh. But then I felt something rise up in my subconscious, and my mind devised a plan. If he was going to tease me, then I was going to tease him until he woke up.

The hand that was tucked between us went into action. I took the time in my mission to drag it down his chest, not just for his reaction but just as much for me. The skin that I rubbed beneath my palm was warm and smooth, and I could touch his chest forever. I pulled my hand roughly down his abs, and he shivered and I felt his face heating up against the crown of my head.

I went lower and lower with my hand, and his hands kept on kneading my ass firmly, and I was actually having a hard time not arching into him. The hell was that about? I had never had that urge before. It was too much like fanfiction. But I used my self restraint and focused on the task at hand, literally.

I had reached his stomach. I pulled my head back to look at his face and...oh man. For him, this must be all part of some erotic dream, because his face was deeply flushed and his mouth was open, panting softly. His eyes were clenched shut and he was shifting around on the bed, just like I was.

Before I lost all self restraint and plunged into something I had no knowledge about doing, I dragged my hand firmly down his stomach to rest in between the beginning of the v, right between the tips of those tempting hipbones I could barely see in my peripheral vision. He let out a moan that, while quiet, was the most sinful thing I had heard.

I couldn’t lose it. I couldn’t lose it. Just focus on doing only what you need to. Plus, it looked like he was about to wake up, so I gave in to the final push and pushed the heel of my palm against the hem of his pants. I could tell that I wasn’t touching anything, but I knew it still was close, so he would probably wake up now. My goal completed, I pushed my hand there in rhythm to the pushes on my ass, and let myself go a bit loose as I writhed under his touch, and I arched my back again and groaned, this time purposefully into his ear.

I heard a gasp and then a jolt, and then the hands kneading my ass slowed and stopped completely. Ah, he was finally awake. I took my hand off the hem of his pants and moved it up before settling it onto his upper chest again. His breathing became choked a little when he realized that his hands were still on my ass, and he quickly released me.

I leaned back and looked at Eren’s chest, just now realizing that I was breathing hard and that my face was probably flushed. I slowly rolled my eyes up to his face and with a slight jolt saw that his face was still red, but more so now that he had realized what he had done, and his eyes were bright and he shook slightly.

“Oh god, Levi,” he whispered out, and even that whisper was lower than his normal voice and it did things to me. “Did I...was I...doing what I dreamed I was doing?” He looked mortified. I took a shaky breath and whispered back, “Well, that depends. What exactly were you dreaming about?” Woah, my voice was deeper too. I could tell that he had noticed, because his eyes widened and he shook a little as his face went even redder.

“I was...well...you were...um...” He looked embarrassed as he spoke. “We were acting out the elevator scene. Like, almost exactly, only then we fell over and I kept on kneading your ass, and then you unbuttoned my shirt and raked your hand down my chest and nearly palmed me...” He looked so upset that he was telling me about this kind of dream he had, and I felt my face go red at the fantasy his mind had created for him. Well, I guess I had almost palmed him.

“And then I woke up and realized that I was actually groping your ass, and...oh god I’m so sorry!” His eyes met mine and seeked for forgiveness. I looked back and thought to myself. Did he really need forgiveness? I mean, I had kinda wanted the whole thing in the first place.

I met his gaze firmly and said, “You don’t need to apologize for anything.” He looked stunned, but then I added, “But if you really want forgiveness, then yeah, you’re forgiven.”

He looked a little relieved at that, but then moved his arms up cautiously and wrapped them again against my waist. I snuggled under his chin and sighed against his neck, enjoying the shiver that came from him. He brushed a hand gently up and down my spine, right on the ridge, and I slightly arched into it, enjoying the feeling.

“Hey, Levi, what time is it?” he asked after a while. I opened my eyes. I had nearly fallen asleep again because of the warmth. I rolled over so that my back was pressed into his chest and he settled his hands around my neck and clasped together on my chest.

“No clue, why?” I let out a dissatisfied sound when he let go of me and rolled over, looking at the little bedside table on his side of the bed, where the clock was. Then he squeaked and left the bed entirely. I turned to see him darting towards the door. “What is it?”

“The delivery should be coming soon!” was his response. Delivery? Of what? He was looking slightly anxious as he opened the door slightly and peeked into the hall. Clearly not seeing what he wanted to, he shut the door with a disappointed sigh. But then there was a shout from outside the door, and his face lit up as he yanked the door open with enough force to break it. I was honestly surprised that there wasn’t a crack in the wall from the handle crashing into it.

He raced out of the room, and I raised an arm to yell after him, “Wait, Eren! You...” my voice dwindled off and I lowered my arm as he disappeared. “-aren’t wearing that many clothes...” It was true. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, and for some reason he didn’t wear pj pants, but shorts. So basically he was in the equivalent of running around outside in just his boxers.

“Thomas, my man!” I heard him yell outside the door, and I groaned as I headed over to the door to remind him that for the love of all that is pure and holy there were other people in this hotel that were probably asleep and wouldn’t take kindly to a half-naked teenager screaming in the hallway.

I peered out the door and caught Eren doing a handshake with a tall blond boy who looked completely normal besides the fact that next to him was a mass of boxes and bags. It almost looked like he was moving in.

The boy, Thomas, looked past Eren, not fazed at all by Eren’s half-nakedness, and spotted me. His eyes widened slowly as he took in my face. “Woah, he looks like that one guy from that anime you love so much!”

Clearly Thomas didn’t watch too much anime.

Eren nodded, then walked over to me and slung an arm over my shoulder. “Yep, this is Levi. Levi, Thomas. Close friend and one with favors to fill. Also a bakery delivery man and baker himself.” I took in Thomas as he both seemed to enjoy and hate Eren’s comment.

“Come on, man, I respect the compliments, but you don’t have to remind everyone that I owe you.” He turned to his pile and held up a couple boxes. “Care to help?” Eren wasted no time in grabbing several boxes and heading back to the room. I was momentarily left alone with Thomas.

He instantly asked me the question. “Are you two dating?” I contemplated telling him the truth. The way he asked it told me he wouldn’t be surprised if I said we were, so I told him the truth. “Yeah, as of last night, actually.”

Why is it that every time I say something, someone takes it the wrong way. Thomas’ eyes opened wider for a moment, and then settled his face into an understanding look. “Ah, so it’s one of those.”

I looked at him quizzically before it hit me. “Wait, wait, no it’s not like that. We’ve been friends for a long time and we just finally both agreed last night. Nothing happened.”

“Uh, huh,” he responded. Clearly he didn’t believe me. Thank god that Eren came out then and noticed us just standing there. “Come on, you two. I’m not going to be moving all of these by myself. Especially you, Levi, since you’ll be reaping the rewards with me.”

Huh. I think I understand what kind of delivery he had been waiting for. I picked up a couple boxes and I started to walk back to the room, but stopped dead in the hall as the smells from inside the box assaulted my nose. God _damn_ , it smelled amazing. Completely heavenly.

I quickly sped into the room and set down the boxes before I ripped anything open and became an animal in the hallway. Thomas carried the last of the boxes inside and set them on a table. The smell that was filling the room was going to drive me insane and my mouth watered as I licked my lips.

Thomas walked over to Eren and Eren pulled out a bill and gave it to him telling him to, “Keep the change, Thom. You deserve it.” Thomas looked at Eren and clapped a hand against his shoulder. “Thanks, man.” Then he turned and left the room.

Eren shut the door, then looked around the room at the pile of boxes, then looked at me, and a wide smile crossed his face. “You look incredibly desperate right now.” I realized that he was probably right. I was standing with my back slightly bent and my arms hanging loosely from my sides. My gaze kept going between him and the box closest to me, and I couldn’t be sure, but there was possibly a tiny drop of drool hanging from my mouth.

I looked at him, pleading with my eyes to let me go and tear into the damn box that was driving my nose wild, but then there was a pounding on the door and Eren turned to me and told me, “Wait here, and if you sneak open a single box, I will eat all of it in front of you.” I moaned out my protest, and the sound made his eyes widen and a blush cross his face in record speed. I was surprised, because I had sounded incredibly desperate there. Shit, I think I might have just unintentionally turned him on.

He forced the door open and there stood Thomas again, but this time with a large container that let another smell into the room that had my knees going weak.

“I forgot the coffee in my car,” he said, smiling and handing it over to Eren. He turned and waved as he walked away and Eren shut the door and put the large container on the table by the boxes. Then he looked at me again and he smiled even bigger than before.

“You sure you want to date me? You look about ready to ditch our relationship for these sweets.” I rolled my eyes, leaping on the balls of my feet. “Can we just...eat now?” My voice was high and needy sounding. Eren shivered visibly and looked at the floor, but it was doing nothing to conceal his blush. “God, when you talk like that...” he mumbled. He practically ripped open a package of paper plates that I hadn’t noticed earlier and threw one at me. “Go ahead. Open a box.”

I reached with a hand to tear open the box and...oh god I wasn’t even conscious anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for that crappy ending. Better will come later!


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren is immature, Dr. Horrible is sad, and punches are needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, late update. This chapter is shit. Honestly. I was in a Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog mood (major spoiler, by the way), a Netflix mood, a The Lonely Island mood, and then a cruel mood at the end, so yeah. Don't get too excited. Time for some mini angst!  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
> UPDATE!  
> I'm getting hate, hah! Either way, I was planning on an early update because I don't want you all to be pissed! I'll be updating potentially tonight or tomorrow, depending. Don't hate me! :) Because I love you all!

I pushed the last bite of pumpkin muffin into my mouth and groaned. I downed the last of the coffee that was in my cup and leaned back on the bed with a heavy sigh. I was stuffed and I felt like I wouldn’t be able to move for days.

The amount of food that Eren had gotten us to eat was enormous, and in the past hour more than half of it was gone. Eren had seemed surprised that I was able to eat as much as I did, but when it came to sweets, I was all over that shit like a titan on a crowd.

A second later I nearly was tossed into the air from him slamming backwards next to me on the bed. He threw his arms above his head and let out a large sigh. “God, I can’t believe we’ve been eating this whole time.” I shot him a look and he returned it, a cocky smile on his face.

“It’s your fault for getting all of that food for us,” I said as I gave him a shove. He nearly fell off the bed but recovered only by basically throwing himself on top of me. Oh hey there.

He landed across my chest, and all my air escaped in one big gasp. “Shit, Eren, get off,” I wheezed. He chuckled, the sound vibrating through his chest and onto mine. “Maybe I won’t. You’re pretty comfortable.” I groaned and pushed him off. He sat up with a little laugh and then looked at me. “Hey, now that we’ve had enough food to last until at least dinner, you wanna spend some time on our fanfictions?”

Ooh, good idea. “Yeah, sounds good.” I forced myself to get up and to reach my backpack. I grabbed my laptop and sat down on the bed again. After grabbing his, Eren came over and joined me. He pulled the covers over his legs and pulled at the sheets under me. I grudgingly allowed him to pull the sheets out from under my legs and slide them over.

We sat nestled together. I slowly tilted my head until it rested on his shoulder. He didn’t respond much other than a wide smile. We sat there for a while, just typing our stories, cuddled up together, and it felt right in a way I couldn’t explain.

“Why is your laptop orange?” He suddenly asked after nearly a half hour of silence. I looked at him, then back at my laptop, as if realizing for the first time that it was indeed orange cased. “Well, orange is a pretty weird color. It’s different, like me, so I was going against the system.”

“You can’t trust the system,” he burst out, and then started laughing as I glared at him and whipped a pillow at him. “Don’t be quoting The fricking Lonely Island at me, now.” He gave me another look, his eyes shining mischievously.

“YOLO, Mother Lover, Jizz in my Pants, IT’S OKAY WHEN IT’S IN A THREE WAY!” he sang out, and held up his hands as I continued to beat him with the pillow. Then the little cocky shit stole the pillow and jumped out of the bed, dramatically raised the fluffy object of comfort over his head, and screamed, “I took it, and THREW IT ON THE GROUND!” while pounding the pillow into the floor with such force I was almost concerned that there would be a crack in the floor.

I finally lost it. I curled into a ball on the bed and choked on my laughter. “How-” I panted out between breaths, “-how did I ever fall for someone like you?” He just laughed at me and jumped back on the bed, grabbed me around the waist, and held me while I laughed. He kept giggling into my ear, and we stayed there for a minute or so.

I finally pushed him away from me and then pointed at the floor. “You gonna give me my pillow, or do I have to force you?” Eren gave me a look before sighing loudly and reached over the side of the bed and grabbed it. Stupid tall people and their long limbs.

I tucked the pillow behind me again and he returned to his previous place against my side. I snuck a peek at his screen, even as new words were rapidly appearing, I suddenly caught a few lines that made my eyes widen.

“YOU’RE FINALLY WRITING IT?” I screeched and grabbed the laptop, but he quickly grabbed it back. “And you have to wait,” he said teasingly. I looked at him with my most unamused face and he laughed but looked a little nervous. “Don’t look at me like that, I’m afraid you’ll go all Corporal on my ass.”

“And I will if you don’t let me read!” I stared him down. He shivered and he looked more and more uneasy as I leaned in towards him, face drawn into the blank look, and he finally groaned and handed me his laptop.

I quickly devoured what he had written. I had yelled out because I saw that he was finally making the two characters make up. After the heartbreak that I had read, I had been waiting for them to finally realize that they couldn’t live without each other, and now that that was happening, I was relieved.

While I read I had turned myself so that I was leaning against his side, and I slid downward until I was nearly resting in his lap. Without his laptop, he had his hands free, and while one arm wrapped around my waist the other hand gently threaded through my hair.

When I finished I looked up at him, and his eyes shone with expectation. “Well?” he asked. I know it was dumb, but I spun around and planted a slow kiss on his lips. He sighed and leaned into it more, and I mumbled against his lips, “It’s amazing. Thank you.”

We finally decided that it was time for some kind of movie, so we ordered Chinese takeout and sat on the bed (with towels under the bowls so that none of the food would get on the bed) and slurped our chow mein as we aimlessly browsed Netflix. Then suddenly, halfway through an episode of Black Butler, Eren squeaked and shut it off, and I glared at him. You never shut off an episode in the middle like that.

“I just remembered something I wanted us to watch!” He searched for something and I went to refill my bowl. When I came back, whatever it was was loading on the screen. I looked at him in confusion, and he just looked back and said, “You’ll like it.”

Turns out that Eren had pulled up something called Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, and halfway through I was enraptured. My eyes were glued to the screen as I watched this story of the quirky villain trying to get into the Evil League of Evil while getting the girl who had fallen for his enemy.  

When the girl died at the end, and the way it ended, I was stunned. How could something like that end this way? I was mute with emotion, and Eren got up slowly and turned off the screen and I blinked, trying to get moisture back into my eyes.

“Did it...” I couldn’t speak. He gently took me into his arms and stroked my hair. That’s how I fell asleep.

We had to leave first thing in the morning. My back was sore from falling asleep in such a cramped position. Clearly Eren was sore too, but he complained about it. I just sucked it up. Either way, we filed out of the hotel and were on the highway heading back home pretty quickly.

On the way, there were several moments where it was awkwardly silent, but those moments would become less awkward when he would reach over and take my hand, and I would get a stupid feeling in my chest.

We had stopped for lunch at a drive through when it happened. We had ordered our food and had pulled up to the window. The girl had handed us a receipt first to sign and now we were waiting for our food. Eren looked over at me as soon as the window had shut and the girl was out of view.

“Is it a bad thing that I really want to kiss you right now?” he asked. I shot him an amused look. “While we’re waiting for our burgers and salads? What if the girl comes back?” “We’ll just have to make it quick,” he said with a teasing grin on his face. I sighed and grabbed his face, mooshing my lips to his.

I guess we took a little too long, because in my subconscious that wasn’t focused on Eren, I heard the window slide open and a different voice, a male voice, come through. “Hey, you two, this isn’t a gay bar, so cut the shit, fags. Your mom’s are bitches for letting you be like this.”

Eren suddenly stiffened. He pulled away from me and I saw rage flare up in his eyes before he turned to the guy hanging out the window who was looking pissed off. “What?” he said quietly, and I nearly shivered from how dangerous his voice was. The idiot clearly didn’t get the hint.

“I said, fag, that your mom’s a stupid whore bitch who raised you wrong.” I saw Eren’s back tense up and I knew that he was about to do something incredibly stupid. I was right. Without warning, he got out of the car and after shutting the door stood at the window. I couldn't see the other guy, but knew that at this point they had to be face to face.

I wasn’t prepared for the way Eren’s fist flew backwards and then forwards with lightning speed, nor was I prepared for the crunching sound that I could clearly hear, or the scream of pain from the guy, or especially the way that Eren dove headfirst into the window and pushed the guy over, disappearing behind the counter.

I sat frozen for a moment, and then was finally broken out of my stunned daze when I heard the sound of punches being thrown, over and over again, and from the sound of it, they were all from Eren.  I leaped out of my seat with record speed and raced over to the window and peered inside.

I was greeted by the horrific sight of Eren’s back while watching his arms fly from behind, back down to where he was pinning the guy, and the sight of blood being flown in all directions. There was blood coating his fists and he was screaming. “Never talk about my mom like that ever again you dick! She was better than any person you could’ve ever known in your miserable life, and she doesn’t deserve that kind of filth from your mouth!” Nearly every other word was accented with a punch.

I took action. I leaped through the window and, ignoring the sight of other workers and customers staring is shocked and frightened silence, I reached out and grabbed hold of his left arm when it came back. “Eren, come-”

Blinding pain. That’s all I knew. Eren’s right fist had collided with my forehead, and I nearly blacked out before I hit the floor, literally thrown into the air from the force. Somehow my eyes had remained open nearly the whole time, so I could clearly make out the sight of me flying past cabinets and then landing sideways on the floor, and then seeing Eren’s stunned face become desperately frightened, and he raced over to me.

My vision was going fuzzy, then black, and I didn’t register the fact that I was being cradled in Eren’s arms, and he was yelling my name. All I registered was that the pain was fading away, and that the dark tunnel that was surrounding me was very welcoming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Suspence! Sadness! Depression!


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren's past is more exposed when he realizes what he did to Levi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EARLY UPDATE! I love you, so I'm updating this early. I couldn't handle leaving it off like this for a whole week, and neither could you, so yeah HERE YOU GO! Eren POV too!  
> Oh, and by the way, thanks to you guys who told me about the blood type. That helped a ton!

I saw the moment that Levi went unconscious.

The light faded from his blurred eyes and they slid shut. I kept on screaming his name. “Levi! Oh god, Levi, wake up! I’m sorry!” It was no use. He was completely out of it.

I heard murmuring throughout the restaurant, and then I heard someone walk up to me and cautiously kneel down next to me. “Hey,” they said, and I looked up at them. It was the server girl.

“I’m going to call an ambulance for both of them, ok?” I stared at her for a minute before her words made sense. “Yeah, ok sure.” My voice was jagged and tears were freely streaming down my cheeks, but I didn't register them. She gave me a small smile before pulling her phone out of her pocket. She didn’t leave her spot as she started the call.

I heard a groan come from behind me. I didn't realize that the guy hadn’t blacked out. He deserved to endure the pain anyways. For making a comment about my mom like that...

I couldn’t bear to think about her right now. Levi was laying limp in my arms and there was a huge gash that was trickling blood coming from his forehead. It almost looked like a knife wound, and I choked a little on my tears when I thought I could see that his skull was bashed in a little.

The girl finished talking rapidly into her phone and then shut it loudly, a feat only accomplished because she for some reason had a flip phone, but the sound silenced everyone in the building, and then she took a deep breath and stood, turning to face everyone.

“I don’t know if you all heard what happened, but this wasn’t a random attack,” she started out, voice rising with confidence as she spoke, and I shot a glance up at her. Was she trying to cover for me?”

“Our man started this fight by directly insulting this man here,” she gestured to me, “in a really personal way. Now I know that what happened just now was terrifying, but I need you all to understand what is going on. I’m asking that when the ambulance comes, and they will probably have police with them, that when they ask you what happened, that you tell them that Jack,” she pointed down to the guy groaning on the floor in his little blood puddle, “started the whole thing, and then direct them to me. Understand how this guy felt. If someone you lost was being ridiculed by a complete stranger, would you not feel anger?”

She had the majority of my attention now. How did she know that I attacked the guy, Jack, because I had lost my mom? This girl was gaining more and more respect from me as she continued on.

“Just remember that. He’s in a hard place right now, because he was ridiculed twice, once in his personal past, and another in his sexual orientation.” I saw several people shoot me calculating glances when they realized. I looked away and focused on the girl again, because I didn't want to look down at Levi for fear that I would cry harder.

“Please, just do this for me, ok?” She spun around slowly, and gave pointed looks to everyone, until she had gotten a nod from every single person in that restaurant. Then she turned back and knelt by my side again. I looked at her, and then slowly slid my eyes back down to the body I gently held in my arms.

I choked again when I saw that blood had been freely gushing from his head the entire time, and now he was more pale than I had ever seen him, and the gash looked worse. I knew he would need stitches.

I nearly cried out in relief when I heard the sirens closing in and then suddenly we were surrounded. I jerked when two people in uniforms pried Levi out of my grip, and I spun around on the floor, about to leap up and retaliate, before the girl stopped me with a gentle hand.

“Just go with them, don’t fight anymore,” she said softly. “I’ll take care of everything.” I breathed in and then out heavily before starting to walk away. “Thank you...” I looked at her tag, but through my tears I couldn’t read it.

“...Mina,” she offered, a light smile on her face. I gave her a grateful smile before turning and following the paramedics, who had laid Levi onto a stretcher. I followed, practically glued to the side of it, staring down at him, my tears creating little spots on the clean white sheets.

We passed many people, and like Mina had said, there were police interrogating people. The chubbier man they were currently talking to was looking flustered as he was asked what happened, but as the stretcher passed him, he looked first at Levi, then up at my crying face, and then he looked determined as he looked back at the officer and said, “It was a matter of personal affairs. I didn’t see what happened, but she did,” and he pointed behind me where I knew Mina was, and I knew we would be safe.

I followed them outside, where the stretcher was quickly loaded into the back of the flashing vehicle. I was about to jump inside when one of the helpers stopped me. “Excuse me sir, unless you have a personal connection you can’t-”

“That’s my boyfriend!” I nearly yelled in his face. It was heartbreaking to know that we had only gotten together less than 48 hours ago, and he was already in pain and it was all my fault. The man looked surprised for a moment, but he softened a little when he saw my desperate face, and he nodded and stepped back, allowing me to sprint for the opening and clamber inside.

The doors slammed shut behind me and as my eyes adjusted I saw that the two paramedics were flitting around with wires and syringes and cloths, carefully injecting something into Levi’s arm while gently wiping down his face. He was still pale, and I clenched my hands together as I watched.

Someone tapped my shoulder, and I was handed a wet cloth. “For your hands,” I heard a man say, and they turned back to my boyfriend. I disconnectedly rubbed the cloth around my palms and in between my fingers.

I stiffened as I heard a heart-rate monitor came online, and then everything faded until it was just that sound.

Pulsing...

Withering away...

A sudden steady drone...

Cold hands resting on pristine white sheets...

Soft hands pushing a 10 year old brunet boy away from his mother...

Sad voices telling him that, “Mommy isn't coming back, sweetie.”...

Disbelief...

Then the suffocation...

The scene in front of me reflected too similarly, and in an instant I could see the two people I loved the most in this world together, both laying unconscious on that stretcher of death, the clean sheets mocking the state of the people they held trapped under them. My mind told me what would happen next, and I could only wait helplessly until that empty drone came again, and then I would have lost the most important pieces of my heart again.

Sudden hands pulling me up had me realizing that I had fell to the side and then a voice calling out dimly instructed me to breathe. I didn't want to. I was about to lose Levi, and then after he left, I could follow him, and I would see my mother again. I didn’t care.

But then as my gaze numbed, I thought I saw a figure in the distance that didn't exist coming to me, and then when the figure kneeled in front of me and lifted my chin with their hand, I saw it was Levi. He pressed a light kiss, so soft that it felt nearly non-existent, to my forehead, then one to my lips, and then held me close as he whispered into my ear,

 _“Don’t give up on me now, brat. I’m still fighting, so you need to fight as well_.” He pulled back and looking dead into my eyes. “ _Eren, breathe._ ”

I took a breath. Then I took another. I followed that ritual until he faded away and the only Levi that was left was the one on the stretcher in front of me. The paramedic that had been shaking me helped me for a few minutes, making sure I was alright, before turning back to Levi and leaving me alone to return to my despairing thoughts.

I waited, too numb to feel anything right now, the pulsing dragging on and on, torturing me as I just waited for it to end.

But it didn’t.

It’s kept going, and it only slowed once, and then it was back to normal, beating steadily. But that moment I braced myself for the pain that I was about to feel. I remembered what my vision of Levi had told me. “I’m still fighting...” I knew that he was, so I had to be strong and trust in him for now.

We arrived at the hospital within a few minutes after that. The doors opened and blinding sunlight streamed in, and I held my hands to my face. When they cleared, Levi was already halfway out the door. I got up and followed close behind.

They rushed him into the ER and wouldn’t let me in this time, no matter how much I begged. I backed up as the doors swung shut, only to be pushed open again by the other stretcher with the guy I had beat up on it.

I was left to sit in the waiting room, and I tried to be strong for him. I had to be there for when he woke up. I just knew he was going to be alright. At least, that’s what the optimistic part of me kept on saying.

I don’t know how long I waited before a nurse came over to me and asked me a strange question. “What blood type are you?” I blinked as her question finally came clear and I stuttered out, “Uh, O negative?” Whatever she wanted I probably couldn’t help with. My blood type was pretty rare to give to someone.

But her eyes widened and she kneeled in front of me. “Really?” I nodded, confused. She reached out and gently took my hands. “Ok, listen. There is a patient in there that has the same blood type as you, and they’ve lost a ton of blood from a recent accident, and we don’t have anyone here with that blood type, so would you possibly, please, be willing to give blood so we can help him?”

I blinked several times, thinking about what she had just said. I guess I could help. I was pretty sure it wasn’t Levi. I assumed he had normal blood type. All I hoped was that I wasn’t giving blood to the Jack guy.

I nodded and she gently pulled me through the doors and into a room. SHe quickly raced over to a doctor and explained that I had the correct blood type, and he looked at me, surprised. He then gestured to a chair and I sat in it, looking nervously at the needles surrounding me. I hated needles.

He sat near me and swabbed the area, cleaning it, and right before he put it in, he looked at me. “I’m going to be taking several quarts of blood, because the patient lost a ton. Are you alright with that?” I shook a little but nodded, and he plunged the needle into my arm.

About 20 minutes later I was walking to the patient’s room with the doctor next to me, who was holding an IV and a bag full of my blood. There were two bags, and then he had told me that it was to be used on two different people, and that we were going to see a little girl first.

We walked into her room and I took in a thin dark-haired girl who looked about 8 who laid on the bed, looking tired. But then she turned her eyes on us, and as they lit up I froze as a bolt of unexpected emotion zapped through me.

She looked just like my mother when she was younger.

I choked back a small sob as nearly familiar features lit up when she saw us. “Are you here to help me?” she asked in a quiet sweet voice, and I wanted to move to her, to hug her as if she hadn’t been there the past 8 years of my life, but I couldn't move. I watched in silence as the doctor walked to her bedside and knelt down.

“Yes, Carly, this kind student has your blood type, so you’re finally getting help.” She smiled such a familiar smile that I nearly fell to the ground, but I went slowly to her bedside and knelt down, never taking my eyes off of her. “Hi, Carly,” I whispered out.

She beamed at me. “Hi! Who are you?” I gently choked out my name. “Eren.” And then a curious look crossed her face. “Eren? I think I have a friend named Eren.” She looked beamused for a moment longer before she looked at me and said confidently, “I’m going to name my son Eren now.” I blinked in surprise and felt a few tears slip down my cheeks as I smiled. “That sounds awesome,” I said, and my voice broke a tiny bit. I reached out gently and took her hand, and she grabbed it quickly and held it with both hands, smiling at me, and her eyes were so familiar that I had to stand and turn away before I lost it.

We left the room soon after and I wiped my tears away as I walked to the room where the other patient would be getting my blood. I followed the doctor inside and then stopped short when I saw who was in front of me with a jolt.

It was Levi! Oh sweet freckled Jesus, thanks be to Obama. I rushed over to the bed and peered down at his face. I can’t believe that we had the same blood type, especially one so rare to give. But oh my word was I glad that it was my blood he was getting.

I leaned over and look his hand in mine as they hooked him up. I watched his vitals, and anxiously asked the doctors what would be happening to him. They told me that if his body didn’t reject the blood and meds, then he would be waking up sometime in the next half hour.

That entire time was spent with me at his side, watching him going from extremely pale back to his normal shade of pale. Then suddenly I felt his hand latch more firmly onto mine, and then I realized that he was about to wake up.

I leaned over his face and stared at his eyelids and I caught them starting to flutter gently. “L-Levi?” I stuttered out, pushing a palm gently against his cheek and grasping the other one tightly. I watched as his face twitched, and then slowly, his eyes started to open.

“Levi...Levi? Please hurry and come back...Levi?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things will get better, I promise.


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi wakes up and learns some things about Eren he never would have guessed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As of this chapter, this story has gone into total WTF. It'll only last the next two chapters, though, because I'm going to get back into the cute fluffy coffeeshop AU that this started out as...heh. Sorry.

Light. Light was coming into view. Oh hey, I’m coming back, aren’t I? I felt dizzy, but I could feel myself become more aware of the surrounding area. It was mostly white. Ok then...?

Then I heard his voice, and then I was pulled out of the remaining darkness and I saw his face come into focus. “Levi...Levi? Please hurry and come back...Levi?”

Oh god. His voice sounded so broke; so hurt, and he sounded so desperate to want me back. I felt a pound in my heart at how much he sounded like he needed me. It made me hurt inside. I wanted to reach out to him, to tell him, “No, Eren, don’t cry, I’m not going anywhere,” but I couldn’t talk. I couldn’t even move my arms.

Then everything came into focus. I blinked a few times and then registered that he was staring down at me, and that one hand tightly grasped mine while the other cupped my face. He looked so worried, but when my eyes cleared I could see the temporary relief cross his face, before he shifted forward and looked into my eyes.

“Levi? Are you alright?” he asked. I blinked a couple times and then opened my mouth and wheezed out a little. What was I doing here? Wasn’t this a hospital room? Why am I here? Then I remembered in a flash; Eren’s fight at the drive-in and then him knocking me out with a punch to the head when I tried to stop him.

I decided for a moment to get him back. Plus, when I was in pain, I was a conceited little shit, and didn’t mind being sadistic about it, so I stared at him and turned my features to reflect confusion. “Um, where am I?”

I looked at him and saw the instant worry on his face, and I almost dropped the act, but I needed sweet payback, so I looked dead into his eyes and asked curiously, “Who are you? Am I supposed to know who you are?”

Jackpot, my sadistic mind pumped an imaginary fist when blind panic covered his face, and he took his hand off my face in order to frantically grasp at both my hands and stare me with his eyes nearly spilling over with tears.

“No, no no! Oh course you remember me! Please tell me you haven’t forgotten about us! Tell me you remember this!” He leaned to me and gave me a slow, desperate kiss. I closed my eyes to enjoy the feeling of it, and how needy it was, then I opened my eyes right before he jerked back to stare at me again and ramble on in desperation.

“We’re together; you and I, we’re a couple! We’ve only been a couple for a few days though, but it’s the truth, I swear! I saw you at the coffeeshop months ago and I loved how much like the Corporal you looked and ever since then our friendship has meant so much to me and I couldn’t get over how hot you looked when you slept next to me and all the fun times we’ve had like the time we played Outlast until 3 am, or the cosplay run we just did and how much my heart beat faster when you held my hand and...”

Oh, I was getting his personal feelings here. I could see how much our short relationship meant to him. It touched my little cold heart and broke off another piece of it’s crumbling walls. I decided to throw him one last bone before I revealed myself to him.

“Oi, mocoso! Escuchas!” I said, inwardly congratulating myself that I was calling him a brat and telling him to listen to me in Spanish. A+ for me, Spanish Prof! Although I knew French a lot better. That clearly didn’t help him. He threw his arms above his head and cried out in desperation and confusion, “Argh, not only does he not remember me, but now he’s bilingual too!”

“Eren...” I said , and his face shot to mine, tears slowly tracking their way down his face. I sighed and held out my arms, and he cautiously moved into them, and I could see he was holding himself back.

“Eren, it’s alright,” I spoke quietly, now feeling guilty at leading him on when he was so worried. “I remember us.”

The relief in his eyes made my heart flip painfully. “Oh thank god,” he breathed out, and he gripped me tightly. The way he held me, as if he had expected to never see me again, made my heart hurt in a way it had never done before. I wrapped my arms cautiously around his back in return and we sat there, holding each other as if we wouldn’t have another chance.

I finally leaned back and pushed him away slightly, and I saw that tears had flooded his eyes and poured down his cheeks, even though the grateful smile covering his face showed how happy he really was.

“What happened after you hit me?” I asked, curious. I could see him flinch when I brought it up, and he looked away before answering. “That server girl calmed down everyone in the whole restaurant and called the ambulance for you two. Then she got everyone to tell the cops that it was a matter of self defence. Then I rode here in the ambulance with you.”

I blinked, then said, “That girl is a badass for doing that.” Eren nodded, and then he whispered, “You lost a lot of blood too, so they had me give you some.” I suddenly noticed the IV and the blood that was being fed into my arms. I looked at Eren in a slight state of wonder. “You have O negative blood?” He nodded slowly and wiped his eyes on his sleeve. Gross.

But I ignored that as I leaned forward and placed a hand gently on his arm, and his gaze shot back to me. “Thank you, that means a lot to me,” I mumbled out. I’m not very good at expressing my thanks in times like this.

He stared at me for a moment before a wide smile crossed his face, and he leaned forward again and held me tightly. “I wouldn’t do anything less for you, Levi,” he whispered against my shoulder. I felt a tingle rush through me and I grabbed him again, holding him tighter than before.

Then I pulled back and looked at him. I needed to kiss him right now. So I reached out and grabbed the back of his neck and forced his lips to mine. The way he worked so hard to make me happy and to make sure that I was still there made me feel an emotion that I didn’t feel that often. It was a feeling that I usually only felt in the context of when my mom used to talk to me in French when I was a kid, or when I really felt accepted by my friends, or when I was surrounded by kittens (true story), but I had never felt it in the context of towards another person like this before, and as I kissed him, needing his taste, I felt it again fill my heart.

Love.

He pressed back against my lips gently, as if he were afraid that if he kissed me too hard I would disappear, but I forced that worry away from his mind as I pushed back into him with more force, and then he let go and pushed hard into my lips, and suddenly I shuddered when his tongue swiped out and licked my bottom lip. I knew what was coming next.

Carefully I opened my mouth. I had read about this happening many times in fanfictions, but I had never experienced it personally. But maybe he had done this before, because his tongue darted into my mouth and pushed against mine. I couldn’t help the moan that slipped out, and he faltered for a moment, which let me gather my courage and swish my tongue back against his.

He was clearly surprised, but then he flicked his tongue back, and I retaliated, and our tongues battled in a dance that made me wonder why we hadn’t done this before. I hadn’t realized that my arms were slung around his shoulders and that I was grasping his back, and that his arms were under mine and grasping my waist tightly. We were both wrapped around each other like octopuses (Octopi? Whatever I don’t care right now) and we had no intention of letting go right now. I shivered as one of his hands slid down my back and slipped under the hem of my shirt.

But fate was cruel to us again, because just when things were getting really good we heard a discreet cough off to the side, and we reluctantly pulled away from each other and looked over to the nurse who was shifting uncomfortably off to the side. Eren slid back, not entirely letting go of me, and my arms slipped backwards from the motion but let my hands remain wrapped behind his neck.

“Um, visiting hours are over now,” she said awkwardly, holding a clipboard tightly to her chest. Eren had the nerve to groan in annoyance before he turned back to me, worry in his eyes. “Will you be alright without me?” he asked with a soft tone. My heart melted at his concerned tone. “Depends on how long I’m gonna be stuck here,” I responded, looking at the nurse for my answer. She looked at her clipboard and then looked back up. “Depending on how your head reacts to the hit, you should be out of here anytime between three days and a week.”

Shit. I couldn’t wait that long. I needed to get back home to prep for college. Eren looked at me and grabbed my hands. “I promise I’ll visit you every day, ok? I’m going to book a hotel close to here so I can do that. I wont leave here without you.”

Well if that didn’t make my heart swell. I gave him a grateful look and pulled him into one last hug. “Ok, I’ll be fine. Let’s just try to get the hell out of here as soon as possible.” He nodded and gave me a parting kiss before slowly walking out the door, giving me backwards glances the whole time until the nurse had to forcefully push him out the door. I sighed and settled back into my sheets and sucumb to the tiredness that had been filling me, and I fell asleep with the final thought of, this is going to be one big hell fest.

**  
  
**

My vitals were completely fine a day later. The doctor’s couldn’t explain it. They said it was a miracle. I couldn’t explain it either, but I was completely fine. It was ridiculous.

They told me I had to stay one more day just to make sure, and though I put up a fuss, there really wasn’t much I could do.

True to his word, Eren had visited me every moment he could. He was the first to see the impact of my fast healing. He had stopped dead in the doorway and pointed to my head and told me that the dent had gone away. That had freaked me out, because that was the first time I had heard about any kind of dent in my head. Doctors need to remember to tell their patients stuff like that.

Eren had gone back to the hotel for the night and I was just sitting there waiting for sleep to come when someone opened my door and let bright light stream into the room, causing me to shield my eyes. Who the hell?

A doctor came into the room, and I recognised him as one of the doctors who had controlled my IV and blood injections. I had always felt better knowing that it was Eren’s blood that was going into me. It made it seem more like he was always there, because in a sick twisted way, he was. Funny though, I had never seen this doctor around when Eren was here, now that I thought about it.

The doctor walked over to my bedside and looked at me. He had left the door open, so he was a shadowed silhouette while I still had to squint to see anything. “Levi Ackerman, correct?” I nodded and he bent down to get closer to me and then spoke softly. “I know this is a strange circumstance, what with you healing so quickly and all, but I just need you to answer a few questions for me, alright?”

I nodded. I just wanted the guy to get out of my room and let me sleep. The sooner he asked me, the sooner I could be left alone.

“Splendid,” the guy said without much enthusiasm, his round glasses glinting slightly in the light behind him. I had always thought that they made him look creepy. “First off, let me tell you that your recovery is unheard of. Completely goes against the rules of natural healing processes. Now we went through some studies, and we came back to the idea that we think the blood we’ve been giving you might be a reason for this.”

I was confused at that. Why would Eren’s blood be so special? How could it be special? The creepy doctor seemed to read my mind and he continued. “We decided to analyze a sample and we found that the red blood cells have almost a superhuman quality to them, letting them regenerate and reproduce extremely rapidly. We found that the genetic makeup of these cells would massively benefit the medical world, allowing for the quick healing powers of millions of possible lives. Your’s isn’t the only example. The same blood that was given to you was also given to another girl of 8 who had a terminal illness. She was meant to finally give in sometime this week. She’s nearly completely healed.”

His words astounded me. How could Eren’s blood have that much power in it? I lay against my pillows, unable to move as I thought about this. Then I had a thought. “How could this person who gave me the blood help? You can only ask for so much blood from them. How could you save millions of lives with only a little bit of blood?”

The man straightened and he gave a almost evil sounding chuckle that made me shiver. “Well, since I technically have full rights over his body, I’ll extract all of his blood. That will leave him in a rather, how should I say, unstable position, since he’ll have no blood left, so he will simply expire.”

I saw red. This doctor wanted to take Eren, my new boyfriend, and drain him of all his blood? Who was this son of a bitch? I started to rise up to whack him, but in one swift motion he drew out a vial and injected me with something. My body went numb instantly, and I fell back against the sheets. Damn it, he wasn’t letting me move.

“Now that I have your full attention,” the doctor psychopath said, sliding the vial back into a pocket, “I just have one question for you.” He rose, and I was able to make out the longer hair, beard, and eyes glimmering evilly behind round glasses.

“Where is Eren Jaeger? Where is my son hiding?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Grisha Jaeger has entered the scene.


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi learns information and know's he has to warn Eren. But how?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Random early update! Either way, did you all notice that now there's an ending coming up? Yeah, I know it's sad, but I need time to focus on my other story too! Plus, 30 chapters is kinda a big thing...  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
> UPDATE FOR CHAPTER 25!  
> My dear readers, I have a problem, and that problem is called school, and because of the massive amount of stupid projects and papers that I have to write for tomorrow and this week, I've had no time to work on the chapter, so it will be up sometime this week, but just not this weekend. I'M SO SORRY! Don't worry, things will work out!

I glared up at the man seething with anger and sudden realization. This...THIS was Eren’s rich asshole of a dad? Eren had only been scratching the surface when he said that his dad was an asshole; this guy wanted to flat out murder his son, who just so happened to be my boyfriend!

Eren’s dad was now walking around my bedside, talking as if he had all the time in the world. “That serum that I injected you with won’t let you move for another three hours at least. By that time, I will know where my son is, and I will have taken him back home.” He shot me a look and then waved in my direction. “Your mouth should still work a little for the time being, so why don’t you go ahead and talk to me?”

I tried to spit in his direction. “Yooullll....neverh get ahny-ing fum meh,” I mumbled out, pissed at how my voice wasn’t working. He just chuckled and turned to me. “I know you have an interesting relationship with my son. You two are clearly close friends.”

I internally breathed a sigh of relief. He didn’t know that we were dating. That was important. As long as he didn’t know that we were a couple, then everything was good. Things were rough already as it was. Things didn’t need to get worse.

“Anyway, since he has been the one to so quickly spend all of this time with you, I know that you know where he is, and trust me, if you don’t tell me, I have plenty other little vials I’ve been wanting to use. You could be my little test subject.” I kept a glare painted on my face and let my anger grow. I tried to move, but it wasn’t working.

“Wuh-why duh yuh wanh ‘i'm?” I slurred out. If he was so confident he could grab Eren so quickly, then I had the right to know why he wanted Eren to an even bigger degree. Thankfully, he decided to indulge me. I just wish he didn’t do so by grabbing my hair and pulling me up.

“Well, I have full rights over his body, because I’m the one who made it that way.” My eyes widened as he continued. “Yes, indeed. I used him as a guinea pig when he was young. The whole reason his blood is that way is because I injected him with a special serum. It’s designed to strengthen the body and to give it special qualities; enhancing certain traits. In his case, the ability to heal. And that has shown positive since you got his blood and now you’re healed.”

I looked at the bastard and tried to settle my features to reflect my utter disgust at him and his actions. That was no way to treat his son! This man disgusted me more than anyone else I had ever met.  I tried again in vain to move, but again, nothing happened. Shit, I hated this guy.

“So I will ask you one last time;” He basically threw me back against my sheets and stared down at me again. “Where. Is. My. Son?” He accentuated every word. The way his glasses sparkled only served to flare up my anger more.

I thought quickly. I needed to steer him away from Eren as soon as possible, but in order for it to be believable, he needed to think that he had the upper hand and that it would take me until the last minute to confess. It was risky, but for Eren’s sake I knew I had to try.

“I don’ ‘ink I cn tell yuh,” I mumbled out, playing hard. I saw his eyes harden behind the glass and he leaned down and got into my face, and goddamn I wish I could move because his breath absolutely reeked. He stared at me for a moment, but then smiled, and I started to get worried that I had started this a little too soon.

“Oh, is that so?” he whispered dangerously, and still in my face, he started to pull another vial out of his pocket. Then he backed up (thank sweet freckled Jesus) and made a small show of drawing out the orange liquid into a syringe, his eyes never leaving my face with their dangerous glint.

“You might want to rethink about that option, mister Levi,” he mumbled out, and in a swift movement he had the needle pressed against my arm, but not going in. If I could have, I would’ve jumped up in shock, because damn it he was fast. A thought crossed my mind; maybe he had had some of that serum injected into himself? But for now, I couldn’t think about that; I needed to pretend that he had pushed me to my limit. So I twisted my face into the most terrified it could manage under the circumstances and darted my eyes between the needle and him.

“He, uhh,” I slurred out, and he pushed the needle into my skin a tiny bit, not injecting me, but it was enough for me to blurt out the first thing that came to mind. “Hes a’ theh Rah-mehduh twehnteh mils ah-whey,” I tried to sound desperate. He leaned back a little, and the needle came out of my arm but didn’t leave it. “He’s at the Ramada twenty miles away?”

I tried to nod and look worried at the same time, but all my head could manage was a slight up and down twitch. I had to be specific. That was the hotel we had been staying at for the run, so they should still have record of us being there, but no record of us going anywhere else, so I figured that for now, Eren would be safe. I just hoped that his dad bought it.

For a few heart-tearing moments nothing happened. He stared into my eyes for any hint of a lie, keeping the needle pressed against my arm. I held my breath and looked terrified, keeping it in my mind the fact that I needed to believe it in order for him to buy it. It needed to seem as if I had just given it up to preserve myself, and that I was ashamed that I would give away something as serious as this to someone who wanted to kill the person in question.

And then he slowly stood up and pulled out the same vial. He held up the syringe and then injected the serum inside back into the vial before putting both back into his pocket. He looked back at me, and I kept the face, if not widened my eyes. This part was just as, if not more, crucial that he believe, because if he saw my face relax at all, then he would know.

“Why thank you for that, Levi Ackerman, I’ll make sure to tell my son that it was you who told me where he was right before I start to drain his blood.” He gave me another smirk before turning on his heel and walking back to the door, giving me one last grin before he shut the door, finally cutting off the light.

I tried to breathe and I let the expression slip from my face. Shit, I had to figure out a way to get to Eren now! But my phone was on the opposite table, and there was no guarantee that he would pick up at this hour. I had to do something personally. But what?

I was thinking so hard that my whole body was twitching and-wait...I was twitching? Shouldn’t I not be able to move at all for the next three hours? I looked at my arms, and sure enough, I was shaking really hard. I focused on one of my arms, and I shakily made it rise off the sheets before thumping back down.

 _Holy shit, I could move_. Well, kinda, but still, it was a huge surprise. Suddenly a thought hit me; if what Eren’s creepy ass dad had said was true, then maybe the fact that Eren’s blood was coursing through my veins, maybe it was going against the paralyzing serum in me and getting rid of it.

I waited for another few minutes before trying to move again, and this time my eyes shot wide as I was able to lift my arm fairly easily. It just felt numb now. I took a breath and shifted my legs, surprised yet again when they moved, feeling the same numbness as my arm. I swung them over the side of my bed, my body tingling with the numb feeling, and set them gently on the floor.

I took a deep breath and slowly attempted to stand. It took several tries, but then I was able to stand at the side of my bed while grasping the rail behind me. I carefully let go and then I was standing on my own. I looked at my arms and in several clumsy movements ripped the IV’s off of me.

Then I looked towards the door. One thought blazed through my mind. I need to warn Eren. I took a step forward and nearly collapsed, but then regained my balance and took small steps that got stronger the more I walked. Damn, Eren’s blood was really powerful.

I had to get to my phone. I took steps around to the small table near the door of my room. I reached out and clasped at my phone. It took me a little to swipe it open because of my shaking fingers, but I finally got it open and tapped out the number, making several mistakes and becoming more and more upset. I needed to get to Eren now!

I finally had the correct number dialed and then I held the phone to my ear, one hand braced against the table. I shook harder as the rings droned on and on. I was probably waking him up, but still, he normally picked up before the third ring, which was currently sounding on the phone. I bit my lip, becoming more and more nervous. Maybe he had already gotten him! Maybe he saw past my bluff and found out where Eren was! Maybe-

“Hello?” a sleepy voice came over the other end, and I nearly fell over from relief. His sleepy voice had never sounded so sweet, and that was saying something, because his sleepy voice was the damn most adorable thing ever.

“Eren-” I choked out, my tongue feeling thick in my mouth, “-I’ve got’a tell yuh.” My voice was slowly returning. He must have realized something was wrong, and based on the rustling I heard I assumed he was now sitting up in bed. “Levi, what’s wrong? Are you alright?”

“Eren,” I blurted, my voice coming back fully as I said it, my voice shaking in desperation,  “your dad is coming after you.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eren has been warned.


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Eren gets the news, he must decide how to escape from his dad once and for all, but what does he do about the hospital-bound Levi?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ARGH! I'm so mad that this is going up late! But it needed more detail, so here i am, posting at nearly 2 am on a school day. I'll definitely make sure to have the normal two chapter updates this weekend, though. Anyway, read on!

I sat still in the bed, covers wrinkled around my waist and I stared at the wall and allowed my jaw to drop open at what I had just heard.

My dad. My dad was coming after me. He had found me; he was going to bring me back. I was going to feel the press of needles into my arm until I drifted off into unconsciousness and then I would wake up again, not remembering what happened until hours later.

I was going to relive that hell.

I didn’t realize that Levi was calling my name through the phone. “Eren? Eren please, tell me you’re still there!” I shook my head and shakily responded into the phone. “Yeah, I’m still here.”

“Ok, listen to me,” he whispered, “You need to get out of here. You need to drive back home, away from where he’s looking for you. I sent him to our old hotel, but as soon as he realizes I tricked him he’ll either search every hotel for you or some back and beat it out of me, and when that happens you need to be far away, do you hear me?”

“Wait, what? No no no, you’re coming with me!” I said into the phone, feeling sinking deep into the pit of my stomach. I wasn’t about to let my dad do anything to my boyfriend. But from what Levi had said, it sounded as if he had already come into contact with him, and the fact that he had convinced my dad that I was somewhere I wasn’t was amazing to me. My dad had always been able to tell when I was lying, even if I was just twisting the truth the tiniest way.

“Eren, I’m still in the hospital and I’m stumbling all over the place because of some numbing serum your dad injected me with.” My eyes widened and fury rushed through me. My dad had put one of his experiments into Levi? I was pissed, but worry was quickly rising up in my gut, because I knew all about my dad’s vials and serums. Oh man, did I know.

“How long ago?” I asked, knowing that this was crucial if we were to escape without him catching us. For all I knew, my dad could be riding up the elevator right now. I shivered and got quickly out of the bed and started to throw things into random suitcases without giving much thought into it.

“Maybe ten to fifteen minutes,” he responded, and I jolted upright and dropped the pants I had been throwing into the suitcase onto the floor next to me as my mouth dropped open. “Levi, that isn’t possible. I know my dad’s potions from his other subjects; the paralyzing one takes nearly three hours to wear off-”

“Eren,” Levi cut me off, “it’s your blood. He wants your blood because it has special properties that allow the body to heal extremely rapidly, and since your blood has been going into my body it contradicted the serum after only a few minutes.”

My first thought was disbelief. My blood, special? There was no way. But then when I was about to tell Levi to cut the stupid joke it hit me that it made sense. The way my dad would run tests on me, injecting me with a number of serums, and the way he would make cuts all over the sides of my hips so they wouldn’t be seen and keep tabs on them, and then just the fact that I had always healed extremely fast. I had just never really thought about it like that.

“Eren,” Levi’s voice came over the phone again. “I know this is shocking, but you need to get out of there. If he finds you he’ll drain all of your blood.” I forced myself to swallow this information and continued throwing things around. “What do I do?” I asked quietly, afraid of what he would tell me.

“I already said; you need to get back home. I’m not going to be discharged until sometime tomorrow, so there’s no way I can go.” I selectively listened to him as I zipped up the bags and opened the door into the hallway. I held the phone in one ear while I dragged my suitcase down the hall, still wearing my black long sleeved shirt and black plaid pajama pants.

“And I already said that I’m not leaving you,” I pushed the button for the elevator as I spoke, and I started forming a plan in my mind. “Eren, there’s nothing you can do. As soon as he realizes he’ll come back and get me, and I’ll distract him until you can get back home and be safe,” his desperate voice told me.

My heart ached as the elevator went down. I couldn't believe how self-sacrificing Levi was for me. He wanted me safe so bad that he was willing to hold off my dad at the expense of his life. How did I ever deserve him? The doors opened and I sprinted out, throwing the keys on the desk, waking up the desk manager as I said, “Here, I’m signing out. Thanks!” and then bolting through the doors.

“Well, where are you now?” I rushed to the side of my Porsche and yanked it open, chucking stuff in the car and slamming the doors shut. “I’m wandering around my room trying to wake up my legs,” he said, grunting a little bit. “Shitty legs. Your dad is a grade A asshole. He’s a bitch. So are his bitchy vials. That serum sucked balls.”

I couldn’t help but crack a small smile at his language. I guess he became more vulgar when he was hurt or pissed. “Alright, well, I’m in the car.” I started it for emphasis, and I heard Levi’s small sigh of relief.

“Alright, thank you, Eren. Now drive away. Please. Be safe, alright?” I wilted more as I heard his concerned tone again. I checked around me as I got onto the road before speeding over the speed limit. “I’m driving now. I need to focus,” I said, my voice dropping out at the last bit.

I could hear the upset tone as he whispered out, “Alright, Eren. Please, make it-” I heard a choked sob before he whispered out, “-for me,” and then I heard the dial tone. I lowered the phone, tears streaming down my face as I choked on sobs of my own. He had sounded like he thought he was never going to see me again, and that broke my heart.

But I still had to do this. I picked up the phone again and searched my contacts rapidly until I found the right one. I clicked it and held it to my ear. After two rings I heard a voice on the end. “Hello? Eren? What is this about?”

“I have proof now,” I whispered, even though it was just me in the car. “He’s after me, and I have proof. He threatened one of my closests friends and my friend got the information right from his lips.” I refrained from using the word ‘boyfriend’ around this man.  “We know what he wants from me now.”

The voice on the other end was silent for a moment before sounding out firmly, “We’ll have to bring in your friend in order to confirm all the information, but he could prove valuable in this case. He’s important in this cause.” The voice paused, then asked, “Where are you? Are you safe? Is your friend safe?”

My heart twisted and I gripped the wheel more firmly, not realizing that I was now going over 90 miles per hour. My face settled into one of determination as I growled into the phone, “No, but he will be soon.” I pulled it away and ended the call, my focus going back to the road as I mentally went through every step of the plan. Thankfully it was only a 7 minute drive from the hotel to the hospital.

I sped into the parking lot of the hospital and leaped out of the car, leaving it running. I wasn’t worried about anyone stealing it; there was no one around, save a few cars that I knew were the staff. Plus, if things went correctly, this wouldn’t take longer than a few minutes. I had also done this before.

I shoved open the doors and the person at the desk looked up curiously. I inwardly took a deep breath, prepared myself for the pain, and then fell flat on my face.

I was right about the pain; I slammed my head down hard and bumped my nose, but it was manageable. At least enough to where I wouldn’t cry out, although I nearly did. I heard the cry from the woman at the desk, though, and I inwardly smiled through the pain. I felt the vibrations of feet around me and then I was being lifted so that I was upright. Just a few more moments...listen to their thoughts about what to do...let them be about to take you somewhere...and then action.

I slowly blinked open my eyes, and I could hear the whispers of the doctors and they tried to get a response from me. I just looked at them blearily, and then just like I thought they would, they asked to see my ID. Jackpot. I acted the part; I slowly and clumsily searched my pocket and bought out my ID, but it was the fake one I had. The one that my father had given me if I ever got into trouble at the hospital. The one that was my get out of jail free card.

A doctor took it and read what was there before a look of understanding crossed his features, and he showed the card around, the doctors gradually pressing less and less into me. I didn’t entirely know what the card said, but whatever disease was written on it basically said that I was prone to heavy spells of nausea and would fall over, but that it was never doctor-worthy. I didn’t understand how it worked, but it did. It also gave me the right to have a hospital room to myself while I “recuperate” for a few hours.

They took my hands and pulled me to my feet. “I think we should still get you to sit down somewhere, and while you’re at it, you should clean off your forehead. It has a pretty bad gash-” A doctor stopped his sentence as he looked at my head again, and I could now feel the blood that was there. “Strange,” he mumbled out, and suddenly I had an idea as to what he was thinking about. The cut must already be healing fast.

“Either way,” another doctor said, pulling me behind her, “we’ll get you set up.” She pulled me down several hallways, which I memorized the path to, and then stopped in front of a room and gently brought me inside, guiding me to a bed and sitting me down. “We’ll let you stay the night, alright? We’ll check on you again in the morning.” Perfect. Just like I’d planned.

I nodded slowly, and she smiled before shutting off the light and quietly leaving the room. I waited until the steps had been gone for about thirty seconds before getting back up and pulling my phone out of my pocket. I dialed his number and then put it to my ear, gritting myself.

He picked up within a moment. “Eren, where the hell are you, you bastard?” I couldn’t hear an engine so I had to assume that he was at the other hotel. I stood straighter and said deeply into the phone, “Why, I’m at the hospital, dad. Didn’t you know?” He growled and then threatened me. “You son of a bitch. Don’t think I can’t get you. I’m coming, and you can’t escape me.” He hung up with a click. Now it was all just a huge race.

I let the hand holding the phone drop to my side and I just sat there for a moment. Then I raised it up again and typed out a quick message. _Be ready for us_. I texted a road and then sent the message. Then I typed in another number. I started to feel anxious again as it rang once...twice...three-

“Eren?” I breathed out a sigh of relief. “Levi, quick tell me; what room are you in.” He was silent for a moment, then asked, “Why?” He sounded tired in a dejected way, as if he had been preparing himself for my dad to come in any minute and strike him down on the spot. But I pushed that mental image away as I rambled, already leaving my room. “I just need to know. Please tell me, Levi.”

He was silent for another moment before I heard him speak. “Room 204” I peeked at my own number. Room 210. I was close. Thank goodness. I hung up before he could ask me anything else. I walked one way, then seeing the numbers go up, turned and walked the other way. It stopped at room 205. I walked around the corner and looked first to my left, then my right, and saw the closed door with the plaque that seemed to glow with the number.

I pushed the handle down and opened the door. The light shone around me and illuminated the small room. I saw Levi’s back, and saw that he was sitting on his bed, his hand still lowering with the phone in it. He turned, looking only slightly nervous, but then when he caught sight of my glowing form his eyes widened, and he rose off the bed and stared at me from the opposite side. “Eren,” he whispered, sounding almost reverent. I looked at him, my heart melting for him, before I spoke strongly.

“Come on Levi. I’m getting you out of here.”

We peeked around the hallway and looked into the front lobby. I saw no one, but knew that the lady at the desk would still be there. We needed a distraction.

I looked to my side where Levi was crouching. I never would have thought that at any time in our relationship we would be breaking out of a hospital. But you know; there’s got to be a first time for everything. I reached back and smiled a little when he grasped my hand in return. We had to look funny; me in my pajamas and him in his white hospital gown (not that I was complaining. You could almost completely see under there).

Levi tugged my hand, and pointed to another room a little down the hall. It was open, and it didn’t look like it was a patient room. It looked more like an office. I nodded and we snuck into it. Thank freckled Jesus, I thought as I saw an office phone. I looked at the buttons and saw one that said ‘Front Desk’ and pressed it, holding the phone to my ear. I heard the ring down the hall, and then prepared myself when I heard it stop. “Hello?” I heard her voice both from the phone and the hall.

“We need you to meet with the rest of the staff in the meeting room,” I tried to sound professional. I had no clue if they even had a meeting room or not. I hoped I wasn’t goofing things up. I started to sweat nervously when she groaned into the phone, but then relaxed when she said, “ I thought that meeting wasn’t for another half hour.” I nearly scoffed. What hospital has meetings at five in the morning? But I wasn’t about to complain. “It was moved. Now come on.”

I heard her give another groan from the front before the phone went dead and I heard the rolling of her chair. I grabbed Levi and we ducked behind the door as she walked past, her heels clicking across the floor. We waited for another moment before looking at each other, and then I mouthed, “One, two three!”

We tore out of the room and raced down the hallway, clasping hands just like at the run. I heard the woman shout after us, but we didn’t hear her. The doors opened just as we got there and we broke through them, panting wildly. I yanked him again and pulled him to my car, which was empty and not wrecked, thank goodness. I pushed Levi to the passenger’s side before racing around to the driver’s side and jumping in. Levi was already belting up, but i just revved the engine and pulled out of the hospital lot faster than I ever drove.

We raced down the road, panting a little and regaining our breath. Then suddenly I started to laugh. It was full of relief and exhilaration at what had just happened. Then I heard Levi start to laugh a little, and it made my heart beat faster. We were safe.

Wait, no, we weren’t. My dad was coming now. I stopped laughing and looked over at Levi, my face becoming serious. He looked at me and he knew something was wrong. “What is it?” I didn’t answer for a moment as I drove to a nearby gas station and stopped. “I called my dad. He knows I’m here.”

Levi inhaled a breath sharply, but I stopped him before he could say anything to me. “We need to plan this just right. We have maybe a minute or so by my guess before he gets here. You might wanna change or something,” I said, and I heard a tinge of regret in my voice that now I wouldn’t be able to see his legs, which were surprisingly nearly hairless and perfect looking.

Levi sat still for a moment before nodding slowly, and I got out of the car to buy something, because whenever your crazy scientist dad is after you wanting to drain your blood, that’s the best time to go drink some mountain dew.

I came out and saw Levi standing near the passenger’s side wearing jeans with no shoes and a gray shirt with a navy blue hoodie that I recognized as my own, since it was two sizes too big and covered his hands, and if we weren’t in this situation I would have blushed because of how cute he looked. But now wasn’t the time.

I stopped next to him. “You ready?” I asked. I hadn’t given him many details at all, but I hoped he could still trust me. He looked at me with determination. “I don’t know what you’re planning, Eren, but whatever you have cooked up, I’m ready for it.” My heart swelled at his tone and his look. I was relieved that he was willing to trust me. And now I needed to uphold that trust.

“Then get into the car. He’ll be here soon; we need to get ready to drive faster than a bitch,” I said, heading over to my side. I watched Levi nod and then get into the car, but I stayed outside, my door open and the car running, so I would be ready. I needed him to see me.

Within a minute I heard a roaring and braced myself. I knew what his car sounded like, and that mirrored it perfectly. I watched as a set of lights came into view, and then I knew when he had spotted me, because I heard the engine pick up. Geez, my dad was insane. Levi’s voice came from the inside of the car. ‘“Eren...”

I bobbed up and down on my knees a little, getting ready. It was important that I time things right. His car was suddenly illuminated as it sped into the gas station and it didn’t stop, even as it made a sharp turn and came right at my own car.

I leaped in, slammed the door, and sped forward, where I had parked directly in the out lane. He followed me, and so the chase began.

He drove forward and bumped into the rear of my Porsche, and we were thrown forward a little, but I just gripped the wheel and focused on getting to where I had said. Thankfully, it actually wasn’t that far from here; I just had to keep him following me for five minutes or so. Then it would be alright.

My dad urged his car forward again and I caught a glimpse of his face in the rearview mirror; he looked like an escaped mental patient, eyes wide and bloodshot, gripping the wheel, glasses shining dangerously, and a deranged smile on his face. Then he hit me again, and I lost view of him.

I turned for a moment to look at Levi, and he was looking at me, and when I saw the slight hint of fear there I nearly faltered on the acceleration. I can’t believe that I dragged him into all of this. If he hadn’t become so important to me; if he hadn’t been hit by my backpack way back then, then my dad wouldn’t have threatened his life in his search for me and he wouldn’t be in this much danger. I felt the regret flowing through me.

Then he took a breath and reached out a hand. It was a stupid decision, just like at the run from what seemed so long ago, but I didn’t care, as the gesture represented everything opposite of what I had just been thinking, and I took his hand.

I focused on the road again. I saw the exit, and to make it more believable, mumbled to Levi, “Hold on,” before faking to continue to drive forward and then recklessly tear off onto the exit. I saw my dad’s car slide as he fought with the wheel, before he straightened and quickly followed us.

We were getting into a city now. I knew this city well; it was where I had grown up. I quickly maneuvered through the city until I knew that only one more turn until it would happen. I peeked a glance behind me and saw with a grim relief that my dad was still following me. It had to be the only time. I grasped Levi’s hand in warning, and then said, “This is gonna be tough, so just brace yourself for a very sharp turn.”

He squeezed back his confirmation, knowing that I needed to focus on the road, and then I slipped my hand out of his grasp, placed it on the wheel...the side road was coming up...I could see the front of one of the cars...I flexed my arms and then...TURN!

My tires squealed as we made the sharpest right turn you can imagine. I’m surprised I didn’t hit the opposite wall, honestly. I drove forward and then immediately behind me several shapes moved into position. I glanced behind for a moment and saw as well as heard my dad’s car speed into the alley-

-before braking hard with a horrible sound as many pairs of headlights shone onto his car, and more black SUV’s moved into place behind his car so that it was surrounded completely. I stopped my car and Levi and I both looked backwards to watch with wide eyes.

A single man got out of one car, his long black trench coat whipping around him in the night wind. He held up a megaphone to his lips and spoke into it, the voice emerging the same as the one I had called earlier. “Grisha Jaeger, we have you completely surrounded. You have no choice but to come out of the car, and with both of your hands up.”

There was a moment of tense silence before slowly the door opened and my dad emerged, looking confused, as if he had just wandered into the whole situation by mistake, and he was instantly surrounded by black clothed men carrying guns, and they quickly pinned him down and handcuffed him, and I breathed out a sigh of pent up emotion I had been holding in for eight years.

My dad had finally been arrested.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Surprisingly, they organized his trial only a few days later, mostly because of the severity of the case. Mikasa was present as a witness, and so was Levi. They testified for me about what they knew about what my dad had wanted from me, but they left out several things, such as the fact that I had fast healing powers.

Then the man that I had called presented his full case. He presented the fact that they had been gathering evidence to convict my dad for about four years, and showed evidence that proved everything Levi and Mikasa said. Then they revealed something I didn’t know; apparently my dad had tested on several other people his serums, and when they failed, he turned to his own son.

Grisha Jaeger was found guilty and convicted of human abuse and attempted homicide. He was sentenced to lifetime imprisonment and all of his property and belongings were given to to his closest relatives.

Meaning that Mikasa and I each became billionaires.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things shall go back to normal now...:)


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren and Levi's life as a couple at home...and stuff happens...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS.....IT'S OVER 9000!!! I can't believe it! This is amazing! I've kinda realized that I've severely drifted away from the original coffee shop idea, but it will slight come back! Thank you all for the support you've given me this whole time! Yep, so this is a glimpse at Eren and Levi's couple life...but then stuff happens a little...hehehe. Have fun with this chapter!

I opened my eyes and the first thing I registered was that I saw maroon. The second thing I registered was that there was an arm around my waist, and I let a small smile cross my lips as I snuggled backwards into the grip. Ah, that’s right. Eren.

After the case with their dad, Mikasa had wasted no time in buying herself a little cottage outside of the city, where she could still have her job and visit us without living in the crowdedness of the city.

As for Eren and his share, the first thing he did was have me move in with him. He had barely given me any choice in the matter (not that I disagreed) and practically moved all of my things from my apartment to his single-handedly. When I had offered to pay my part of the rent, he laughed and said, “What the hell else am I gonna do with this shit ton of money right now?” Well, besides replacing his Porsche (which had been badly dented in the chase) with a cool new green one. Oh, and he got me my own car too. Rich bastard, I had said while kissing him.

It felt a little weird, to be honest, to be back in the city I had been living in for the past three years and to not worry about getting low on rent money, or worrying about getting new clothes, or even a car. But I was quickly adapting.

Nearly every day was the same for us. We woke up in each other’s arms, ate a nice little breakfast, then went about our normal days. Around five in the afternoon we would meet up again and head down to the 104th Cafe and spend our time there on tumblr and updating our works until it closed. Then we would get back to Eren’s-no, our-apartment and get ready for bed before cuddling together and falling asleep. Then we got up and did it all again.

I looked at the wall and sighed, contemplating this whole situation again. Eren and I have been seeing each other for nearly two months, and in that time we’ve become so close, and it was everything I wanted.

Well, not quite everything.

I shifted around a little uncomfortably as I thought about the idea that had been haunting me for the past few weeks specifically. I loved our relationship, and I loved careless nights spent kissing Eren passionately before we fell asleep, but it never went any farther. I mean sure we had gotten hands under each other's shirts before, but nothing happened below the belt.

And I kinda wanted that.

I felt a hitch in Eren’s breath behind me and knew he was waking up. I turned in his arms and watched as his eyes slowly fluttered open. They blurred at first but then focused on me, and he gave me a sweet smile. “Morning, Levi.”

My mouth twitched in my form of smile as I responded with a ‘morning’ or my own. Eren smiled wider and gently leaned forward to kiss me. Surprisingly he didn’t have bad morning breath. The first time I noticed, I had been surprised. But it was a benefit, so I wasn’t worried about kissing him in the mornings.

We kissed a while longer, and I could tell we both were preparing to just screw all we had today and laze around the apartment, when my stomach grumbled and I groaned in embarrassment, laying my head against the crook of his neck. He chuckled and brushed a few fingers through my hair in apology before gently pushing me away and getting out of the bed.

My gaze followed him as he stood next to the bed clothed in only his pajama pants and then stretched, smirking at me knowingly as I watched the ripple of his muscles. After his arms fell back to his sides I finally noticed his facial expression and threw that same soft pillow from my first stay at his face. He tried to dodge but he still got hit directly in the face. He caught the pillow laughing and then threw it back before heading for the kitchen.

I stretched myself and got out of the sheets, my own pajama pants slightly sagging down from all the wiggling. Like Eren, I wasn’t wearing a shirt, and I could feel the cooler air on my skin. I knew it was colder in the kitchen so I grabbed a shirt and put it on, then grabbed one for Eren. I walked out of the room and walked around the black mass of fur that hurdled towards me every morning, allowing the black lab to rush past me before spinning around and coming at me again. I knelt down and allowed Gunther to rush up to me and I braced my hands out to catch him and then scratch his head a little before getting up again. This had become the normal routine.

Eren was in the kitchen already cooking up some eggs. He saw me walk up and smiled, holding up an omelet on a spatula, and my mouth watered as my stomach growled pitifully again. He flipped it over and then placed it gracefully on a plate before handing it to me, which I took quickly and took to to the table.

I waited impatiently while he made his own and then joined me at the table. I threw the shirt at him and he caught it with a thankful smile. He put it on and then he picked up his fork and held it up. I clinked mine against his before we both dug in. That had become a weird little thing we did before each meal. It was nice, for some reason.

We ate in silence for a few minutes before Eren cleared his throat. I looked at him and saw that his face was slightly flushed. “Hey, Levi?” he asked, sounding a little nervous. He opened his mouth to speak but broke off. I looked at him with a hopefully encouraging look.

“Where-where are we, uh,” he scratched the back of his neck, not looking at me, his face continually getting redder, “where are we going with this?” I looked at him, a little confused at his wording, and Eren spluttered before rephrasing. “I mean, where-when are we going to...” he dwindled off a little before taking a deep breath and blurting out, “-take it to the next step?”

I stared at him, not knowing what to think. I know that I had been starting to want it recently, but this was the first time I had heard anything like that from Eren. I met his eyes and he let out a little gasp and then I noticed he was shaking a little. He made a helpless noise in the back of his throat and looked away again.

I put down my fork carefully, even though I wasn’t done with my food, and leaned back a little, crossing my arms. “Well, I mean, do you want it?” Thinking back, that had to be a stupid question. He had just asked me, for crying out loud.

He nodded a little, and whispered out a, “Yeah,” still looking at the floor. My heart pounded deep into my chest and I slowly stood up before walking over to him. Then I leaned over a little and took his face in my hand and turned to to mine. He looked at me, his deep teal eyes shining with all the emotion he was holding back from speaking.

I leaned closer and then less than an inch before our lips touched I whispered out, “Well, glad I’m not the only one,” and then pressed our lips together with a touch of neediness. Eren made a little whining sound in the back of his throat and pushed back, his hand coming up to loop around my neck.

I would never get tired of the way Eren’s lips felt against mine. They were extremely soft, but when he was being passionate they were just the right tightness so convey the emotion. He knew just how to work them and when he finally used his tongue it was a heavenly feeling. What was funny was that both of us had had only one girlfriend in the past (yes, we were each other’s first gay partner), so we had never had the experience in kissing a man before, and he was a real pro at it.

I pushed against him a little more but then he slowly started to get off the chair, rising up slowly so that we could continue the kissing. He was lower than me...then he was level...and now here he was at his normal kissing height, right above me. Now both of his arms had moved to clasp around my waist and back, and mine were the same for him.

But soon it became apparent that the previous conversation was going to become relevant. Something shifted in the tone of our kissing and they became less and less slow and more desperate and needy. Eren’s hands had started to move more rapidly up and down my back and then he slipped them under my shirt and traced up my spine, making me shiver. My hands splayed against his chest and they grasped the material tighter and tighter.

His hands reached my nape and he traced it lightly, making me gasp. Then he broke our kiss for only a moment to pull the shirt over my head, but that whole time I leaned forward, my lips trying to find his and moving slightly against nothing. His lips collided with mine again and then he started to push me backwards. I let him direct me, my heart pounding in my chest. This was happening.

He missed the doorway the first time and he accidentally slammed me into the wall next to it, and then mumbled a hurried apology as he corrected himself and then shoved me away where I tripped backwards against the side of the bed and fell onto it. He was all over me in a moment, kissing everything he could reach. I put a hand over my mouth to cover my moans as he kissed around my chest and then licked a circle around one of my nipples.

I needed him to get out of that shirt, and I needed it now. I pulled him up and slammed him back against my mouth, then I pulled away and gave a death glare to the offensive material that was his shirt. How dare that thing be covering Eren’s glorious chest? I reached down and yanked the shirt up as high as it would go in one swift movement. He lifted from kissing my neck to fully wiggle out of the shirt, and then I only had a moment to enjoy the sight before he was back on me.

Somehow we had shifted to the center of the bed, and Eren was kneeling over me with both arms on either side of my face. My arms were under his and wrapped tightly around his back, and then he licked a long stripe down my pulsing vein and I arched up into him.

I tried to tell myself to cut it out, but I wasn’t in control right now. But then his body followed my action and then he lightly ground into me and I let out a louder moan because holy shit he was hard. He did it again, and my hands clawed against his back.

He looked up and I saw that his eyes were blown to massive proportions and they looked absolutely stunning. “Is this...” he started, and I shivered at how low his voice had gotten, “alright? Are you ok with this happening?”

I stared at him and was suddenly self-conscious about that I must look like. But I wanted this. Oh god, I wanted this bad. I leaned up a little and then pulled his face to mine until our noses were touching. Then I whispered, “I am, but we have a problem.” He instantly nodded, willing to do whatever to make this perfect.

“Who’s topping?” He looked at me a little amazed that I would ask such a question, but then he laughed. “I guess that’s relevant, but you know that in the majority of the fandom-”

“-the Corporal tops,” I mumbled, suddenly feeling excitement boiling in the pit of my gut. Would I really get to top Eren? I was incredibly nervous, but I wanted to uphold the kind of tradition I’ve seen so often. “Are you sure you’re alright with me topping?”

He gave me a wide smile that made my heart go a mile a minute and he pressed his lips gently against mine before staring into my eyes with a deep ferocity I was sure he could see right into my soul. “I wouldn’t have anything else for my first time.”

My eyes widened a little as that thought processed. Eren was a virgin too? We were both going to lose our virginity at the same time? And he wanted me to be the one to do it. I felt a sense of pride and warmth flow through my whole body and I knew that I was going to do this right. For Eren.

“Do you have stuff?” I asked, leaning forward to kiss a line down his jaw. He let out a stuttered sigh that clued me in that he was really enjoying it and then shakily nodded. Then he reluctantly got up and dashed over to a drawer and threw things out onto the bed and bolted back, as if he couldn’t bear to be away from me more than a moment.

I eyed the foil package and the bottle that were next to me and then I looked back at Eren. He was shivering from excitement and his clenched hands proved that he was anxious for us to get going. So I grabbed the bottle and crawled over to him, swishing my hips a little as an afterthought, and his eyes widened as I got closer and closer before I finally pressed my lips against his and with the hand that wasn’t clutching the bottle brushed against the tight bulge in his pajama pants and he moaned into my mouth. I smirked and then said in a low voice, “Well, then let’s do this.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We lay together on his bed, our chests sweaty and covered in the white fluid. I had collapsed against him and we were both breathing hard, coming down from our releases. I started to feel really dirty, so I leaned up and pressed a gentle kiss to Eren’s lips before I pulled out. He let out a deep sigh and lay in the same spot while I got up and threw away the rubber.

As I did, I thought to myself, well, that was amazing, but hilarious in its own way. Since we hadn’t really thought that much about the whole thing before, we quite literally went off of all the fanfictions we had read as to what to do, and surprisingly that had worked to an extent. It was funny because whenever we had goofed up, we would laugh nervously and say, “Hey, that’s what they did in that fanfiction!”

Prepping Eren had been a strange experience to say the least. He had wiggled around so much I was worried that I was doing something wrong. But then he had moaned out, “Oh god, there Levi!” and I knew I was doing it right.

The start had been awkward too. We were both adjusting to the strange pressure, but then once we got it it was easy and perfect. It was like our bodies knew exactly how to react to the other person in the perfect way.

I turned back to the bed and cuddled up against Eren, and he lazily slid an arm behind my shoulders and let his hand rest on my chest. We were silent for a moment, thinking over what had happened, before he looked at me and spoke gently. “Levi?” I looked at him and saw his eyes sparkling. “Thank you...for...everything. You’re literally amazing.”

My mind was for some reason brought back to the car chase and the instant thought I had was, you’re amazing? Dude, you’re a total badass! But then, he had just had my dick up his ass, so that had to be something that had been out of his view.

“Same, Eren,” I said, reaching a hand over and gently brushing it down his face. He hummed and leaned into my touch and I chucked at how much like a kitten he looked. He turned on his side and held me against his chest and I wrapped my arms around his back as he did the same to me. We lay there, content, for a while before Eren mumbled out, “Levi? We still have stuff to do today. I totally forgot.”

I just smiled a little against his chest, hearing the tone in his voice and knowing he wasn’t planning on going anywhere. So I just pressed a kiss to his collar bone and whispered, “Screw it.” He nodded his agreement and held me closer.

We didn’t leave the bed the rest of the day. We spent it all cuddling and sleeping, and I thought it had been the best day yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heh. You thought I was going to write smut, didn't you? Well, if you want that, you'll have to read my other fanfiction. :3


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren gets a certain letter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter chapter! This chapter turned out more dorky and cute (maybe? I can't tell.) So, yeah!

I looked at the mail and swallowed. There it was; a letter with the Trost University seal on it. I looked behind me at where Eren was typing at the table. I knew it was for him. I had gotten my letter with all of the information in it for my senior year a few days ago, and Eren had been a little more than sullen when his hadn’t come yet.

But now it was here. This letter would tell us whether or not he made it into Trost. I obviously wanted him to get into the school, but it wasn’t up to me. I remembered how misleading the acceptance letters were. They were just as thin as rejection letters, and the first time I had gotten mine I had thought that I hadn’t made it in. I hoped that Eren knew about this.

I hid the letter under several other pieces of mail and bought it over to him before setting the pile down next to him. He looked at it before aimlessly shifting though the small pile, and I turned away, waiting for it.

“Holy shit,” I heard him mumble. There we go. He had found it. Not looking at him I responded. “What is it, Eren?” He was silent for a moment before whispering out, “I have a letter from Trost...and it’s small.” I could hear in his voice that he was about to become upset. I turned around and saw him staring at the letter intently, as if looking at it hard would let him see inside. “Well, you’d better open it, then,” I said, not bothering to hide the slight concern on my voice. I hadn’t looked, and I wasn’t sure. I hoped he got in. Please have gotten in, I thought as he stared at it some more.

“Yeah, maybe I should...” he mumbled out, and then with shaking fingers he started to rip open the tab. The apartment was completely silent other than the sound of slowly ripping paper. With a final tear, the envelope was open, and Eren hesitated a moment before drawing out a single piece of paper. I held my breath, waiting to see what the result was.

He took a deep breath and then slowly unfolded it, peeking at it with lowered eyelids, as if it would disguise what he was about to read should it be bad news. Then he took a deep breath and his eyes settled on the words, reading them slowly. Neither of us took a single breath as he read, and my heart pounded in my chest. Would he make it in?

Then he let out a huge sigh and fell out of his chair. My eyes widened as he fell and I rushed over to him, dread filling my heart. _Shit, he didn’t make it, he didn’t make it._ I crouched over him and gently started to shake him. “Eren? Eren, please, listen to me, I will personally go into that office and kick the headmaster’s ass if they-”

I stopped short when he started shaking, and it took me a moment to hear that he was starting to laugh quietly. The volume increased and then he was laughing, almost insanely. It was slightly terrifying to hear. My eyes were wider than normal as he sat up, still laughing, and then he stood and looked down at me still sitting on the floor, and then he let out a large, “HA!” which made me jump, and then he started running around the apartment, screaming loudly.

I grabbed at the paper on the table and read the first line, my fear dissipating into instant excitement as I read. _Dear Eren Jaeger, it is with great pleasure that we welcome you to your first year at Trost University_. I couldn’t hold back my smile as Eren kept screaming behind me, running from our bedroom to the living room where he vaulted over the couch and then in and out of the kitchen, his screaming becoming shouts. “I MADE IT! OH MY GOD, I MADE IT! I MADE IT INTO TROST!”

I stood finally and watched him run around. Then he abruptly turned and ran right to me, tackling me and pinning me to the floor. I was stunned for a moment, and then he started kissing me with excitement. I laughed a little and tried to return the kisses, but he was too fast. He kept missing my lips and kissing my cheeks and nose instead and eventually ended up kissing all over my face.

I gently pushed against him with a laugh and said, “Get off, you’re heavy.” He giggled as he pressed a last quick kiss to my lips and then got off of me. He pulled me up and then gathered me into a hug. I could feel his pounding heart and I smiled as I hugged him tight. “I’m so happy right now,” he whispered into my hair, and I patted his back and then broke out of his grasp.

“Well, that means that you should be checking your supply list soon,” I smiled up at him, and his beautiful eyes lit up again and he lightly bounced around. “I got into Trost, I got into Trost,” he sang as he pranced over to his laptop and instantly pulled open a tab. He held out a hand, silently asking for the paper without looking up from his screen. The letter had his username and password on it, so I grabbed it and handed it to him.

“So this means that we need to go shopping soon, huh?” I teased, sitting next to him and reaching up to tangle my hand in his hair and brush through it, even though I knew that no amount of brushing would get it out of its permanently messy look. He hummed in agreement and leaned slightly into my touch as he looked at his list.

We checked up on our school information the rest of the day. We organized when to go shopping and when to buy our books. Then in the middle of plans, Eren suddenly stopped short. “Wait, it’s my freshman year, which means that I’ll have to stay in a dorm, right?”

I blinked and then realized he was right. The rules were that you couldn’t have an apartment or cottage until at least your junior year. That meant that I would be having the apartment to myself for an entire year, and I knew that neither of us liked that. I didn’t want to be in this whole apartment without Eren, and I knew he didn’t want to be in a dorm with other guys if I wasn’t there. He probably didn’t want to be in a dorm period.

“Well, I don’t know if there’s anything you can do,” I said hesitantly, and we were silent for a while as this processed. Then he sighed and said, “Yeah, you’re right.” We fell into silence again. Then he got up from the table and asked, “So I guess there isn’t any way we could convince the board otherwise?” I thought about it. I don’t think a circumstance like Eren’s had ever happened at the school before, But I wasn’t sure if that would change anything, so I shook my head and said, “Probably not.”

He sighed again and then looked at the cheesy calendar that was on the wall of the kitchen. I say cheesy because when Eren had bought it it had been in the middle of January, and the only one he could find was a cartoon calendar from Dollar Tree, so he looked under a picture of the Ninja Turtles kicking ass and said, “Classes start in a few weeks. I can’t believe that they contacted me about this so late.” I would’ve been surprised too, but that’s also how it went at Trost. It was almost like a test to see if you really wanted to go to the school.

“Right. So that means that we should shop soon. As in probably in the next few days,” I collaborated. He nodded again and then after yet another round of awkward silence I went around to him and hugged him tightly. “We’ll work this out, alright?” I said, staring at the wall behind him. He nodded against my shoulder and we stayed like that for a while.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We broke through the door into the apartment and dropped our bags on the floor, breathing heavily. Well, Eren dropped his bags on the floor; I carried mine over and put them on the table. We had just gotten back from getting the last of our supplies, and classes officially started tomorrow.

Eren walked over to the couch and started to sit down, since he was exhausted, and it was close to 9:30, but I used some of my remaining energy and walked over to him, pulling him back up. He groaned in protest but I didn’t relent. “Come on, Eren, you know that we need to sort out all of this shit before we get to bed, or we might miss the opening assembly because of this shit.”

He moaned a little and in my tired state I felt a little twinge at the sound. We hadn’t really screwed around in a few days. But now wasn’t the time. We were both exhausted, we had school tomorrow, and we needed to sort out everything. So I forced myself to ignore the sound and pulled him over to the table, where our new backpacks were already stuffed with materials. Sheesh, you would think from all of the stuff shoved in there that we were in middle school.

Eren and I spent nearly 30 minutes opening and sorting new packages, and every moment longer made it more like hell. Eren proved how tired he was when he suddenly slipped with a pair of scissors and sliced open his thumb, where he jumped up and screamed, “Ah shit, that hurt! Damn it, stupid bastard scissors can go to hell!” and then he tiredly kicked the scissors across the table. (Yes, kicked. He has freaking ballerina flexible legs.)

I was too tired to move, so I just watched him tire himself out more, until I finally told him to get back to the table so we could sleep. He insisted on bandaging himself first, which meant that we were up longer than we wanted.

We finally finished, and the clock read 10:47. We stumbled to our bedroom and Eren just ripped off his shirt and got in. I took a little more time to get out of my jeans and put on pajama pants before getting in. He instantly rolled over and wrapped his arms around me, and I snuggled into them before losing consciousness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Several hours later Eren was standing stock still staring up at the assembly hall, watching all the other students walking inside. He was frozen in wonder. I was a few paces in front of him, and I watched his wonder-struck face and appreciated how it made his eyes wide and teal and beautiful. His whole face was lit up.

Then I slowly walked backwards and gently took his hand, and he shifted that same gaze to me, and after it didn’t go away I realized with a thump in my chest that he thought that I was just as amazing as what what happening to him, if not more so. He quickly reached out and gave me a huge hug and then whispered into my ear, “Thank you, Levi. Thank you for being here with me.”

My heart beat faster and I really wanted to kiss him, but then the final crowd of students passed us and I knew it was about to start and we needed to get our seats with our fellow classmen. So I started to tug him towards the doors and he laughed before releasing me. But he stopped for a moment more and then grabbed my hand, and we walked into the opening assembly for Trost together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eren's reaction=mostly my reaction when I got my highschool acceptance letter. (minus the kissing)  
> And here we are at Trost!


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren experiences some difficulties at Trost.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, it's really pathetic to me just how far away from a coffee shop AU this story has become. However, this chapter is the last one in Eren's, and also the last full chapter that deals with the boyfriends in college, so just bear with me!

I was stunned by Trost. And I was stunned that I would be here with Levi. This was going to be an amazing year.

Well, besides the fact that I couldn’t be with Levi. Like, what the hell? I had my own apartment, and I was the one that bought it out. I mean, come on. Plus, Levi, my boyfriend, was there. I didn’t want to be away from him for so long.

I walked to my dorm section after the assembly. I felt a vibration in my pocket and pulled it out, smiling when I saw Levi’s contact name, Levi Heichou, on the screen. I thumbed at the screen and read the simple message, smiling a little more.

**Levi Heichou: Hey, take care of yourself. Don’t let any of those douche bags ruin your day or I will kick their ass at your command.**

I chuckled at the idea of him being under my command, but then stopped myself before my thoughts took a dirtier turn. I decided to wait to reply until I had walked into my room. My paper said that I was with only one other guy, but for some reason it didn't tell me who. Dumb, if you ask me. I saw that my room was at the end of the hall, right before the stairs, and I walked over to it and cautiously peeked inside.

My eyes took in a nearly bald teen that was sitting opposite the door at a desk. He was pounding into a laptop desperately, and based on the headphones I could guess that he was a gamer and was doing something online. So I just walked inside and looked between the beds and took the one that wasn’t covered with stuff. Then I turned back to the guy and decided to lightly tap him on the shoulder.

He jumped about a foot in the air and his headphones fell off. He recovered and then leaned down to grab them from where they’d fallen on the floor as he spoke, “Goddamn it, Jean, you know better than to interrupt me when I’m gaming!” He put the headphones back on and resumed before I had a chance to say anything. He didn’t look at me the whole time.

I stood there for a moment and then gave up at trying to talk to him. I decided to mill around the hallway and try to meet new people. Unfortunately for me, for some reason people didn’t want to socialize.

We had a both-gender dorm, with boys on the bottom floor and girls on the top and specific rules to not enter the other gender’s rooms. Obviously. Not that I would want to be fooling around with any of the people here. I had Levi. Thinking about him again made my heart pang a little. I was already missing him so much.

I wasn’t thinking while I was walking and then I bumped right into someone. They spilled the coffee they were holding all over themselves, and none got on me. I stumbled up and rushed over to help. “Oh god, I’m so sorry, here let me-”

“No way, you ass! This is a new shirt! Son of a bitch,” replied the teen, and his voice sounded familiar. Then when the guy looked up I recognized him. That long face, the dumb two-toned hair, and the pissy attitude. It was the guy from the run; the one who was in love with my sister.

I was honestly expecting some kind of recognition, or maybe an, “Oh, shit it’s you! Sorry!” But nope, he looked at me annoyed and then ground out, “Oh, well hey, if it isn’t Mr. Gay and Special. This dorm isn’t for people like you.”

I felt anger rise up in me at his words. He hadn’t been acting this way at the race; what had happened? But before I could respond he got up and walked down the hall and into my new room, and I could hear him yelling from here. “Connie, my man! I need a shirt! Some dipshit spilled my coffee all over me.” Great, my new roommate was friends with that asshole.

I got up and then kept walking down the hall. I pulled out my phone and decided to text Levi.

**Me: You might need to kick some ass. That stupid Jean guy from the race is friends with my new roommate and he’s already being a dick; both of them.**

I got a reply barely a moment after I put the phone back into my pocket.

**Levi Heichou: People are so annoying. Can I come over there and decapitate them for you?**

I laughed when I read it. Levi was great like that. Around other people he was closed off and unapproachable, but around me and his other friends he was a really funny, sweet, lovable guy, especially from my perspective.

I needed a break already, but I knew that I had my first class soon, so I just returned to my room and grabbed my backpack, ignoring the fact that both Jean and my roommate, (Connie I think it was) were yelling as Connie played some game.

I followed my schedule and walked into a lecture hall. I looked around for an open seat before my eyes caught a blond blur. No, make that two blond blurs. I smiled wide when I recognized Armin and Levi’s other friend, Erwin, sitting off to the side. Also when I saw that there were open seats around them I quickly sprinted up towards them. Armin saw me and started waving his arms, and when Erwin noticed he let an easy smile cross his lips. I guess that this was an all levels class.

I walked over and grabbed a seat by Armin. “Hey! I didn’t know you went here!” Armin nodded excitedly as he responded. “I didn’t know you were going here either!” He gestured with a thumb over to Erwin who nodded a little as Armin kept talking. “After the race Erwin and I really connected and we’ve been hanging out a lot, and he somehow was able to get me to be his roommate!”

Outwardly I smiled and said, “That’s awesome!”, but inwardly I smirked and thought back to what Levi had said about finding out Erwin’s sexuality. Ooh boy, Armin, I hope you know what you’re getting into, I thought.

Before we could say anything else the teacher walked up to the podium and started to speak, and then we were forced to pay attention.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How did this happen? I wondered miserably as I lay in my bed and contemplated putting in headphones to block out the sounds.

It was a week after school had started and I had learned a lot about my roommate. I learned that his name was Connie, that he liked War on Giants too (funny because he also looked like a character), he was massively into gaming (no shit), that he was best friends with Jean (screw my life), and that he had a girlfriend.

And that both of them together didn’t give shit for the rules. So here I am trying to block out the sounds of them making out on the bed behind me. If I was a normal guy, I might’ve liked the idea that I was listening to my roommate getting some, but since I was gay it just made me really really uncomfortable.

Plus the rules were that you couldn’t leave your dorm room after 10 pm, and it was a solid 10:43. Shit.

You know what, screw the rules, I‘m getting out of here. I carefully got off of the bed and grabbed my phone, shielding it in my shirt so that I wouldn’t have to see what was going on. Then I walked to the door and pushed it open.

I froze when I saw Jean’s face pressed against the door lightly, and when he saw me he turned beet red and then started to back up. I shut the door quickly behind me and then scowled at him. “What the hell, Jean. Do you get off to listening to your friends making out or something?” I had noticed that he was hard.

Then suddenly it hit me. My tone went deeper with anger and my eyes glowered at him darkly. “Are you fantasizing that it’s you and my sister doing that?” His eyes widened and then his face got redder, but he looked back at me, pissed. “So-so what if I am?” he spoke in an angered tone. “What’s it to you? Why should it matter? You don’t like girls, so it’s fine for normal guys like me to think about that stuff! What, did you imagine kissing your boyfriend?” He nearly spat the word out.

My vision turned red. I grabbed Jean by his collar and pressed him against the wall. “Don’t ever talk shit about Levi, he’s got more worth than thirty of you,” I hissed, not really caring now if I made sounds. He choked a little, but then laughed as he grabbed one of my hands and hissed out, “What, does the little midget need protecting? Is it because you’re screwing around with him? I feel like he wouldn’t be able to get near your ass enough. You fags.”

That was it. I snapped and tossed Jean like a doll across the hallway. He smacked into several walls and then finally landed nearly ten feet away. In the back of my sub-conscious I was impressed with how far I had thrown him. But I was too mad to focus on that. I had started to stomp over to him when I heard a loud, “What’s going on here?” and froze.

Oh shit. It was the dorm’s nightwatchman. I was so screwed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day I saw the headmaster first thing. I spoke in my defence to him about what had happened. It took some convincing, but then he sat back in his chair and spoke. “Well, I think that the least we can do is send you to another dorm.” I suddenly remembered something. “Headmaster! I-uh-actually have an apartment a few minutes away, right downtown. Could I just-I mean-would it be alright for me to just stay there?”

The headmaster looked at me and then thought for a long time. Then he asked, “If you’re renting it, then who’s taking care of it right now?” I took a deep breath and then answered quietly, “Levi. Levi Ackerman is.” The headmaster’s eyebrow raised and then he let out a tiny smile. “Ah, Ackerman. Brilliant student. Always respectful, even though he doesn’t really talk to that many people. Tell me, how is it that he’s willing to take care of your apartment for you?”

Here we go, I thought worriedly. I’m going to lose everything now. “He and I are...uh...we’re-kinda...dating.” The last word slipped out in a near whisper. I looked at the desk for a minute, not wanting to see the look on the headmaster’s face. But then I heard a small chuckle and I looked up to see that the man was smiling.

“You are, are you? Well, then that fight you had makes more sense. It’s about time that Levi got into a relationship with someone, and you seem like a really nice young man, Eren.” He leaned over the desk and grabbed my hand, shaking it for some reason. “I’ll see what I can do for you. And don’t worry, I won’t get you into trouble. Jean should’ve known better. And so should have Connie. I’ll take care of things.”

I breathed a sigh of relief and thanked him. Then I rushed out and headed instantly to my next class. I wonder what he would do for me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

**LEVI POV**

_2 day’s later._

I rolled over in the bed and let out another sigh. This sucked. I hated being here without Eren. The apartment was quiet and lonely and darker, and it made me sadder and sadder every day that I couldn’t see him.

Sometimes to cheer me up Hanji or Erwin would crash the place and sleep on the couch, just to let me know that they were there. It helped, but not that much. I wanted Eren back. I wanted to feel his warmth pressed against my back. I wanted to wake up to him holding me and I wanted to kiss him so bad. But I couldn’t, because he wasn’t there.

I heard a small squeaking sound and knew that the door was being opened. It was probably Hanji, so I just ignored it and rolled over again. Then Gunther started to bark, and I stared murderously at the wall. But then I realized something. He never barked when Hanji or Erwin came over. He only barked when-

“Levi.”

I froze and stared right ahead. Was this real? Was I dreaming? Could that really be his voice? I stared at the silhouette on the wall, and I saw his shape; every detail that I had memorized, every curve and line. Then I rolled over and saw him, and I nearly started to cry.

“Levi,” Eren said again, smiling as he lowered his bags to the floor, “I’m home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess I should give a little bit of credit to my friend for the Levi texts. Those are actual texts to me when I had problems.


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graduation day and confessions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ARGH! Second to last chapter guys! Just right now I want to thank all you who've kept up with the story; you guys are awesome!  
> Anyway, before you go all, "That's not what happens at graduations," that's not true, because everything that happens in this chapter is a variation of what happened at my school's graduation, so yeah.  
> All the same, have fun!

I sat next to Hanji on one side and Erwin on the other and tried to ignore the pounding of my heart. I was dressed stupidly, in my opinion, and it was hot, but it was important, and this was something I had waited four years for.

Graduation day.

I honestly wasn’t sure how I had made it. I had been ready to go into my senior year with just Hanji and Erwin by my side, but then it had escalated and become so much better than I had ever dreamed. I had Eren.

It seemed years ago that I first bumped into him at the 104th. But since that wild summer we had gotten so close that it was impossible to imagine us not together. I had nearly completely forgotten what life without Eren was. And I never wanted to know.

Somehow we had gotten each other through both our first and last years of college. I think it was 10% luck, 20% skill, 15% concentrated power of will, 5% pleasure...well alright, I’m stopping the lyrics there because it was more than 5% pleasure. I’m not saying that we had sex every day; it was more every week at least. We had both topped and bottomed, and both were great, honestly, but I think we both still liked it with me topping.

I heard applause from the crowd and stopped my sexual remembrances. I was in the middle of my graduation, for goodness sake! I didn’t not need to pop an awkward boner in my gown. Shit. I hated these things. Plus, if I did, Hanji or Erwin would probably notice and tease me about it for years.

Our headmaster was finishing up his speech about how especially proud he was of our graduating class (bullshit, he says that every year) and then several other teachers came up onto the stage and turned in their positions next to the table that was piled high with diplomas. This was it.

Names started to be called up, and one by one the members of my graduating class walked forward, shook the headmaster’s hand, and then took the diploma with the other and strode back to their seats, some looking proud, some looking relieved, and some looking sad.

Hanji, Erwin and I were coming up soon. The cool thing about our school’s graduation is that before the actual ceremony we got to send in a paper that had who we wanted to sit by on it. That way we could graduate by our friends and then they could sort our diplomas that way. One more person until Hanji.

The teacher that was reading off names finally called out, “Hanji Zoe,” and Hanji sprung up and quite literally bounced across the stage, acknowledging the screams and cheers she was getting from the crowd of science kids near the stage. She grabbed her diploma and then in a flash of daring she rushed over to the edge of the stage and blew kisses to the group, and the screams got louder, before she ran across to her seat again, grinning wildly as she shoved her diploma in my face.

“Erwin Smith,” came the teacher’s voice, and Erwin strode across the stage in large steps, cheers rolling around the auditorium, some deep yells of “SMITH!” and some higher yells  from some of the girls and then one in particular that was in between which was what I believed was the real cause of Erwin’s smile. He reached the headmaster and shook his hand and then grabbed his diploma, and then turned to head back to us, before turning to the side on the way over and grinning before pointing out to a blond head in the right section of the auditorium, and I swear I could see Armin’s blush from here. The two blonds had started dating around halfway through the year, and they were just as sickeningly cute as a normal couple.

Erwin had just reached me and smiled when I heard my name. “Levi Ackerman.” I swallowed hard and stood, my short frame (curse it) barely showing over the other student’s sitting heads. I walked up the stage and then I was surprised when I heard cheering of my own. I shot a stealthy glance over to the audience and was surprised to see Hanji’s science friends cheering and clapping wildly, along with just a mess of other students, and then some of the taller tougher jocks yelling out “Ackerman’s the MAN!” to which I almost snorted but kept walking.

But when I was able to discern a certain voice I nearly broke out into a full smile. I heard Eren screaming his lungs out over by where Armin was sitting and cheering, and then as I was able to see the section more clearly Eren suddenly stopped screaming and then whispered something to Armin and Mikasa, who were on either side. I was actually surprised she agreed to come and see me graduate, but it was a nice surprise. Armin nodded while Mikasa jsut shook her head in a slightly annoyed manner, and then all three looked at me, not cheering.

I was confused and nearly faltered my steps, but I was only a few away from the headmaster, who was smiling at me as if I was his son, and he really was like my father. I should mention that the headmaster had been more like a father to me than my father had, and I really was going to be sad to leave. I shook his hand, looking at him with a slight smile, and then took my diploma, but as I reached out to do so he yanked the hand I was shaking and then hugged me to him tightly. The audience aww’d and cooed and I quickly hugged him back before I took my diploma and started to turn away, catching another view of Eren as I did.

And then I froze. Because Armin, Mikasa, and Eren were standing straight up, faces set in a determined expression, all with right hands clenched in fists over their hearts.

I looked from Armin, who had started to smile, to Mikasa whose expression never changed, and then to Eren, whose bright eyes shone with emotion and love in them, and then I choked a little onstage. Then I caught movement to my other side and looked over to see Erwin and Hanji standing and saluting me in the same manner.

Then before I knew it, other people were standing and saluting me. Other graduating classmates, random students and teachers I didn’t know, and various people around the auditorium. I don’t think many of them knew what they were referencing, but they did it just because everyone else did. The people who didn’t salute just clapped and cheered even more.

I stood still on the stage and looked around at everyone, and tears started to well up in my eyes. Then I met Eren’s gaze again, and I saw that he was crying, and then I turned more to face him as I, with tears starting to run down my face, straightened my own posture and then slammed my fist over my heart.

We stared for another moment, and it was like the rest of the crowd wasn’t there. But it only lasted a moment, because the ceremony had to go on and so I tore my gaze away and headed back to my seat, diploma clutched shakily on one hand.

I sat down and was pounded on my back from every side by my classmates, something that had never happened before. Also something I’m never letting happen again, because I’m pretty sure they broke my spine.

I turned to look at Hanji and Erwin, both smiling, though Hanji’s obviously more crazy than Erwin’s, but in that moment I had to smile as I looked at the two of them and reached out to grab their hands, and there we sat in our little line until we all stood up as a class and then cheered as we threw our hats into the air.

I had officially graduated.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was glad it was summer again. Summer meant that I could spend more time with Eren. Even though he was still going into school afterwards, I could be with him even more now that we were out of classes.

We spent nearly all of our time at the coffee shop this time. The 104th barista’s started to give us drinks on the house because of our coming there so frequently. Other people started to join us. Hanji would come sometimes and we would rewatch episodes over and over again, pointing out all the times that the Corporal and the titan shifter even shot each other a glance.

Other times Erwin would come and sometimes bring Armin, and then we would have more of a double date. Erwin had gotten a job at some prestigious company downtown, so he wouldn’t be far from Armin while in school. He had also gotten them their own apartment, and just like they did for me and Eren, they let Armin stay with Erwin.

Which reminded me. I needed to really get a job. I wanted to get a job where I would still be able to live with Eren. But unfortunately that kind of scope would be hard. I hadn’t told Eren that I was having trouble. I didn’t want to worry him.

But now wasn’t the time to think about that, I thought to myself as I typed, looking up for a moment at Eren across the table. We were at the Cafe, and typing away at our fanfictions. Eren had finished Once in a Dark Moon awhile ago, and had started a new one that was quickly becoming popular. I had surprisingly kept my title as second most popular writer the whole time and had finished my own fanfiction more recently, and the views had gone through the roof. I had seen a mass of fan art come out for mine, and you don’t even know how good that made me feel.

I saw Armin walk over to us and knew that it was to close shop. “Alright, Armin, we’re packing up,” I called, flicking Eren’s arm as I did so. He jolted but then understood and started to pack up.

A few minutes later we were walking our separate directions. Eren and I walked in comfortable silence until suddenly he stopped with a little sound. I turned in front of him and looked at him curiously. “What is it?”

Eren looked at me, and I saw a small shine in his eyes, and it was the kind of shine that made me want to stride over to him and kiss him. But I refrained to listen to what he was going to say.

“Are you tired yet?” he asked, looking at me with those gorgeous eyes. I realized that no, I wasn’t really tired at all. So I shook my head and looked at him. “Why?” He just smiled and then reached forward and grabbed my hand and pulled me along...in the opposite direction.

“Um, Eren? In case you’ve forgotten, our apartment’s THAT way,” I said, my voice coming out in huffs because of how quickly he was pulling me. “I know, I just wanted to do something with you,” he said cryptically, and as we passed under a light I saw that his face was lightly flushed.

I started blushing as he kept pulling me. What kind of thing was he talking about? There was no real special place in this direction that I knew of, where would we be going?

My question was suddenly answered as Eren took a sharp turn and pulled me under the familiar gate that read, Pixis Park, on it. I was starting to get confused. Why would Eren bring us here? It was late, obviously, and even though it was summer, there really wasn’t that much of a reason, right? No one was here.

Eren led us right to the statue of Commander Pixis and then dropped his bag there before taking mine and putting it next to his. I looked around and confirmed it. Yep, no one was here. I turned back to Eren to see him pulling his laptop out of his bag along with something that looked like a small speaker. I suddenly got an idea to what he was planning.

“Eren, are you going to play music?” I asked, stripping off the light jacket I was wearing. I really don’t know why I was wearing it. It was too warm. The air that touched my skin cooled it as I walked back to him as he set things up. He turned a little to look at me and then smiled a sweet smile that made things happen to my heart. “Yeah, but also because there’s supposed to be a meteor shower in a few minutes, and I thought we could watch here.”

Oh right! I had forgotten about that. Eren had been all excited to watch it. I had not really thought too much about it. But now I could really see the excitement flare up in his eyes again, and it made me happy.

My focus was bought to the speaker when suddenly soft music started to play from it. I looked at my boyfriend and he straightened and then turned to me, a light blush on his face. “In the mean time, I was thinking that maybe we could...well, I know it sounds cheesy, but maybe...we could...dance...a little bit?”

I looked at Eren in surprise. We had never danced before, but now that I thought about it, this was one of the more romantic things we could do. So I nodded before slowly walking to him and taking his hands to guide one around my waist and the other on my shoulder, and then I slide my own hands up to rest on his shoulders.

We stayed there for a moment before Eren started to awkwardly shuffle us around the statue, the music soft in the background, but it was sweet, and I was enjoying it. As we kept dancing, our movements became smoother and easier, and we danced around the statue, staring at each other deeply.

I was content, I realized. I had never felt a sense of just contentment. Things were right. I was with Eren. I loved him. I really did love Eren. It wasn’t just because he was good at sex or because he was part of the same fandom as me. It was that he was willing to sacrifice so much for me, and that he found ways to make me smile, which a year ago would have been impossible, and he had broken me out of a shell I never realized I had. And I loved him for it.

“God, I love you,” I mumbled out, not really thinking. I realized what I had said when he froze suddenly and his eyes widened to such a degree that if I wasn’t feeling terrified then I would’ve found it comical.

“L-levi?’ His eyes swirled with an emotion that I had seen from him before, but only in small amounts. Now it filled his beautiful eyes, and then he moved his hands up to cup my face gently as he stared at me. We were silent for a moment, and I could see that he was searching my eyes for something, what I assumed would be a sign of me lying about it. When he didn’t see what he thought he would he dropped his hands to my neck and forced me to look at him.

“Do you mean it? Do you really, honestly mean that?” he asked, his voice quiet and searching, and it made my heart beat almost at a painfully fast rate. I couldn’t lie to him. So I reached up and took his face in my hands, gently stroking his cheekbones.

“I did.”

He let out a sharp breath and then his grip tightened around my neck and then he pulled me closer to his face until our noses lightly brushed and he stared me down with the emotion filling his eyes again. “Say it again. Say what you feel.”

I almost didn’t want to, since it had been a mistake in the first place, but then as I stared back I knew that I believed it. I really did love him. So I told him.

“I love you, Eren Jaeger.”

He shivered a little and let out a shaky breath that ghosted over my lips. Then he pulled my lips to his for a minute peck and then brought my face back to its previous position. “Again.”

“Eren, I love you. I really, truly love you with all of myself.” I kept his gaze, showing that I really meant it. As I watched his eyes close to mine, they brimmed up with tears and then they spilled over as he kissed me lightly again and then pulled back, the words already on his lips, but I beat him to telling me to tell him again. “I love you, Eren.”

He choked a little and the most joyful smile I’d ever seen crossed his lips and then he pulled me more roughly to him and his lips pressed this time with joy and need against my own, and we kissed passionately, and it was the most meaningful and beautiful kiss I’d ever had with him.

“I love you too, Levi,” he sobbed out against my lips, and my heart flipped in my chest with the enormous feeling that his words bought. “I love you soo much, and I want to be with you, and never be with anyone else and-” he couldn’t speak anymore and settled for kissing me some more.

Overhead the first of the meteors fell across the sky, casting their long streaks for split seconds against the dark color, but we didn’t see them, and every wish we would’ve made on those stars was already coming true.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end is near.....


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Years later, Eren and Levi are in for several life-startling events.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys...last chapter! I couldn't wait to post this until tomorrow. Thank you all SO MUCH for sticking with me this far. I couldn't have done this without you all here! I hope you really enjoy this last chapter and then binge read to your heart's content!   
> Also, there is a moment in here that might bring me hate, but please don't...

_4 years later..._

I opened the door for the last time as Armin finally arrived. From the living room came shouts of his name and he smiled gently as he pushed past me and placed some bags on the counter. “I brought more food for us,” he called out. “If we didn’t have enough already,” Mikasa said, walking around us with a glass of wine.

I grunted my agreement and then walked into the chaos that was our living room. People were spread all over the couches. Hanji laying over the back upside down and was chattering excitedly to Erwin, who was sitting right side up on the couch next to her, although he moved over when Armin came so that the two could sit next to each other, Erwin’s arm around the smaller blonde's shoulders. Still the sappy couple.

Mikasa sat down in a chair next to the couch and sipped her wine leisurely. She looked at me and gave me a nod, and so without further ado I moved and sat down next to Eren on our newer couch. I had realized that Mikasa was more alright with Eren’s and my close proximity and couple moments if I had her permission first, and so I had started to respect her opinions and thus waited for her to allow it.

Eren looked at me, his eyes sparkling wildly as he lightly bounced up and down in his excitement. He was making me slightly bounce along with him, and I gave him a look before he stopped bouncing but then bounced his knee.

I couldn’t really blame him, in fact not at all. We were finally here; the final episode of War on Giants. It was supposed to be an hour-long special that would be released in a few days, but somehow a couple days before today Eren had discovered a disk that had the whole thing on it, and he had rushed into the apartment screaming his head off about how some unknown person had just sent us the final episode a whole week before it was due to be released.

I hadn’t believed him but then he had popped it into our dvd player and sure enough footage from the trailer had appeared and then I had flipped out as well. We had then scheduled this party to occur a day before the actual first screening in Japan. And just like Eren had said, there was no return address on the envelope, and I could only assume that someone had hand delivered it. I had a small idea of who, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up. But I was still leaning more towards my assumption, since every year since that first we had run the cosplay run together, always in the Survey Corps, and no matter what, all of us always got the top places.

However, the message that had been with the disk had sure caught my and Eren’s attention; it had simply stated, Since you two are so special, we think you of all people should be the first to watch it. We didn’t know what to make of that, but we just wanted to watch it.

And now here we were, about to watch the final episode. There wasn’t a massive amount of people here, but nobody minded. Armin and Erwin were on one couch, while Hanji sat on the floor right in front of the TV, and Mikasa sat in a separate chair, and then of course Eren and I sat on the other couch. And those were the only people we needed with us.

We were all settled in with blankets and masses of food when Hanji finally dramatically walked over to the dvd player, holding the disk carefully and reverently. Ever since the race she had started to wear her hair up in the same fashion as the scientist woman, so she looked the same as the glint caught her glasses and she whispered, “You all ready?”

No one spoke but everyone nodded, and then she put it in the slot and then raced back to her spot, and we all focused on the screen as the first image appeared, and Eren’s arm tightened around my shoulders and I pressed into him deeper. We all held our breath as the first image slowly came into view; the titan shifter standing with his legs apart and swords held limply at his sides as he watched mutely the destruction around him.

The show had taken dramatic turns since I met Eren. More characters we had loved had died, and a few new ones had appeared. But now, it was the final battle, with the titans surrounding the innermost wall and the colossal and armored titans leading the way. What was interesting was that if we were matching up characters in the show to the people sitting in our living room, then we were literally the only ones left.

Erwin watched himself fight with his one arm with the passion that had become even more apparent at the end of the show, and Armin watched as his screen double gained an almost animalistic courage and fought with his cunning and then killed an onslaught of titans singlehandedly. Hanji focused on herself as she led the Survey Corps in battle as their leader and how she became a serious threat to the titans as she led with skill and courage with her scientific genius. Mikasa watched as she protected the shifter’s life to the ultimate, and then we all gasped when her character was brutally wounded and her ability to fight was diminished, but we saw that she wasn’t going to die; she was too strong for that.

And I watched as every time the Corporal was in a shot, the shifter was there too, and they fought side by side, nearly hand in hand, and for the briefest of moments I was reminded of the race, when we had broken through the defenses of the titans while holding hands and fighting together, just like on the screen. And then it happened. The shifter fought with the ape titan at the last expanse of the wall, the shifter using the Coordinate while the ape titan used his power to fight, and more and more destruction occurred until using the last of his strength the shifter pushed the ape titan into the last bit of wall and then punched through its face, going right into the wall itself.

Eren’s arm froze in its lazy patterns on my arm when we suddenly saw the final walls break and crush the ape titan, effectively cutting off any sounds and breathing in the room. There was absolutely no noise; even the traffic outside was quiet and it seemed the whole world was silent as the moment dragged on, slowly cutting across to everyone’s faces one by one, until the spell was broken by the shifter releasing a huge breath and then things moved again.

We were frozen in place in the living room as suddenly all the characters turned to see through the dust and saw for the first time the wide expanse of land, with no walls in sight, and only green and brown far around in the distance, and the sky shining above all of them, and it was like suddenly a magic spell had been placed over everyone again.

Then on screen the characters finally began to celebrate, and I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. It had happened; they had won. And the Corporal was still alive! I felt proud of that for some reason.

Then suddenly it showed on screen time shots of the remaining people together, traveling to somewhere while the subtitles (those had been already provided, it was amazing) read out in the announcer's voice who had survived and accompanied the words with shots of all the characters we had lost, and tears were flowing by the time the most stunning shot happened.

Hanji let out a gasp, Armin’s eyes went wide, and the rest of us just stared as we watched our characters have the same reaction at what they had stumbled upon. Shining blue, both above and in front of them, similar in color and sparkling with beauty. No one moved for a moment, but then the shifter slowly took a few steps forward, and then a few more, before leaning down to touch the water that rapidly approached his fingertips. His face was frozen, as was everyone else both onscreen and off, and we watched mesmerized as the shifter slowly stood, and then turned to his companions, raising his wet fingers and murmuring out, _“We made it.”_

_“We made it to the ocean.”_

Both Armins made a choked noise and started to cry, and both Mikasa’s just stayed still with an expression of wonder and hope etched on their face, and I looked at Eren for a moment beside me and I saw his eyes shining as tears spilled down his cheeks freely. Then the scientist woman raced forward, throwing off her boots in the process and pulling the Commander with her, and they fell into the waves, and then the shifter’s friend and sister looked at the shifter, who just nodded, looking dazed and the two slowly started to walk into the ocean.

It focused on the shifter’s face for a moment before it suddenly expanded when the Corporal’s voice broke in. _“Well, brat, we did it. We’re here, and we’re alive.” The two stood by each other and looked out at the waves. “Do you regret anything?”_ the Corporal suddenly asked, and the shifter blinked once, still staring at the ocean water. Then the shifter shook his head. _“No, Corporal. I’m here with all the people who are important to me, and I can’t be regretting anything about that. Especially you.”_

The Corporal onscreen raised an eyebrow as all breath in the living room stopped for what had to be at least the third time. Eren and I were both frozen. What was happening?

_“You see, you helped me all those years ago, back when I saw you as all of this was just starting really, and I deeply looked up to you. I never would have imagined that I would be put under your care, and then all the times you sacrificed things for me; I needed you, and I can’t feel regret knowing that you’re here safe with me, Corporal,”_ the shifter spoke with a quiet voice, as if this was a deep confession, and it really was. The characters lapsed into silence as both looked at the waves and the figures dancing around in the shining water that was now orange because of the glorious sunset.

Hanji was freely crying now, and Armin was weeping with a smile on his face against Erwin’s shoulder while Erwin rubbed his back soothingly, and Mikasa just watched and nodded slightly, and I felt Eren relax against me. And then the ultimate bomb dropped on us.

_“Levi.”_

Time stopped everywhere, and silence reigned as all attention was brought to the screen at the sound of a name coming from the Corporal’s lips. I stared wide eyed at the screen, not believing it. It had to be my imagination. Time was nonexistent, and I watched the shifter blink before turning more to face his superior. _“What?”_

_“My name is Levi.”_ The lips spoke and the screen showed the whole man’s face, and I heard a choked gasp come out of my mouth as the implications hit me. Levi. The Corporal was Levi. They had named the Corporal after me. They had named the Corporal after me.

Eren’s arm pressed tightly around my shoulders and I knew without looking at him that he was frozen, wide eyes glued to the screen. On it the shifter blinked and then smiled gently. _“Levi...”_ the character whispered, and I started to shake. It was me. He was talking right to me. It literally was me, now.

The shifter moved forward, and then looked back at the Corporal-no, Levi- and then turned to face him fully, the ocean sparkling behind him and the stars beginning to shine through the sky. All focus was brought to his character as the shifter looked right at the screen-at all of us- and then spoke calmly at it.

_“And my name is Eren.”_

The screen backed away from just the shifter’s face until it showed the full form, then just the silhouette, and then the screen slowly faded to black before the sudden appearance of credits began to roll up the screen. But no one took any notice.

Everyone stared at the screen as if they were doomed to stare at it for eternity, before suddenly a quiet sound began to come from Hanji’s open mouth that slowly rose in volume and pitch until it was deafening and she leaped up and began freaking out the most I had ever seen her. She couldn’t speak; she could only squeal and scream, and so she did, leaping around the room and clutching her hands to her hair, not knowing what to do with herself.

Mikasa shook herself and then I saw the tears falling down her face and she actually looked happy. In fact, she looked damn ecstatic. I saw Armin shaking and his eyes wide and it was obvious his mind couldn’t comprehend what he had just seen and heard. Erwin didn't look much better, and then he finally shook his head and then turned to look at us, and then I turned and looked at Eren.

Eren was frozen; stunned; brain overloaded. He couldn’t understand, and neither could I. Both of us had just been officially dubbed as the characters. Our names were now theirs as well, and they had been named after us. I suddenly remembered being back at the first race as if I was there now.

_“Sir,” I called out. He turned to me and gave a questioning look. “Yes?”_

_“I was just wondering something,” I took a nervous breath. “Do the characters have actual names?”_

_He looked back at us, and if I didn’t know any better, I would’ve thought he looked sneaky. “Oh, I’ve had some ideas. Maybe soon I’ll reveal them.” He gave us a wave and walked off. Eren and I looked at each other, confused, before turning and running towards the tent._

It made sense now. It all made stupid sense. Darius Zackly had been planning on using our names from the moment he met us. And now here we were, and our names were going to be broadcasted all over the world as the official characters, and I couldn’t even gather the brain power to move a muscle.

Then Eren blinked, and the movement made me jolt, because I hadn’t seen him move since nearly the beginning of the disc. And then he turned to me, and our eyes spoke to each other in wonder and total amazement. “Was that-” he had trouble speaking, but he got it out, “-did that really happen?”

I just nodded slightly. I wasn’t capable of words. I could only look back in wonder and stunned-ness as I tried to process everything myself.

And then suddenly Eren had pressed his lips onto mine and then that was all that mattered, and it cleared my head. We were it; we were the characters now, and we were together. It was just us, and there was nothing besides that.

Everything faded around us; Armin’s sudden excited talking, Erwin’s sudden laughter, Hanji’s continued screaming, and Mikasa’s voice finally joining in. It all faded away as Eren and I kissed. I don’t know how long we kissed, nor do I care. All I knew and cared about was right here, and there was nothing more that could make me happy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_2 years later..._

The bell rang over the door and I looked up. I smiled my special smile that was reserved for only Eren as he came in. He immediately found my gaze and he smiled widely, rushing over to get as close as he could to me with the counter still between us. “Hey, sexy, how’s it going?” he asked, giving me an over-exaggeration of his eyebrows, showing me how sarcastic he was being. Well, not about being sexy. I knew that I looked damn fabulous.

“With a line like that, you had better be glad that it’s you saying it and not some random person trying to hit on the ‘sexy’ barista.”

Oh, that’s right. Besides my side job that I had gotten at the same place as Erwin, I worked at the 104th Cafe. I had worked here for around three years now, and in those years I had been promoted to the manager and now I ran the place. It was absolutely the best thing for me. And since it was the place where Eren and I had met, it just made my job all the more special.

Eren chuckled and then reached across the counter and took my chin in his hand, turning it towards his face, and he smirked at me, and it was a dangerous smirk, and I suddenly felt warm before he grabbed me and pulled me forward to whisper in my ear, “Well, I’d still like my order of one sexy barista, and make it to go. I plan on enjoying it for awhile tonight.” I shivered and then pushed him away with a nervous sound. I was worried about how Eren could do that to me, but I was fine with it.

“Hey, Armin, can Levi go on break for a little bit?” Eren called into the back, and Armin appeared, and then smiled and nodded. “Sure! He needs it now too; he’s been working hard all day. Take a break, Levi.” Armin was second in command at the shop, so it was mainly him and I that ran it, but we had a few other students who came and worked over the summer.

I sighed but listened to them as I slid out from behind the counter and instantly Eren was at my side and kissing me. I indulged in it for a moment before pushing him away. “Eren, geez, we’re in the middle of the shop!” He groaned but in a good natured way and pointed around the shop. Actually, right now, it was mostly just our friend group inside; Hanji and Erwin were talking over at one table and Mikasa was at another with a new friend she had made at her work, continually looking over at us (more Eren) while talking. We ignored them all and walked over to our spot. It was the same spot we had been at all these years. It meant us. It was us.

“I know I say this every time I come in, but you really look like you love working here.” Eren said, pulling out my chair for me. I gave him an annoyed look before mumbling, “I can get it myself.” He just grinned and then sat down from across from me, putting his hands up under his chin and just looking at me.

I sighed a little at his face, which looked more dreamy than focused, so I waved a little in his face and he blinked several times. “Oi, brat,” I said, a hint of affection in my voice, “you’re spacing out.”

He just smiled a little. “I know. I was just staring at you and loving how perfect you look.” I turned my face away to hide the small blush that was covering my face. Damn him and his ability to make me feel like this.

“Well-uh, thanks then?” I turned back to him and flattened my face, a stark contrast to my previous words, and spoke again, monotoned. “You should know better than to speak like that to your superior officer, brat.” Eren across from me looked surprised at the change before acting himself. “I’m sorry, Corporal, please forgive me.” Then I noticed that his eyes sparkled suspiciously. “But if you feel that it’s necessary,” he suddenly smirked and leaned forward, staring at me with dark green eyes, “you can beat me again. Do what you want with me. I’m all under your command.”

I shivered and -yep, shit, I was getting hard. Fast. Damn it, Eren, that’s not fair, I thought sullenly as I struggled to keep my composure. Then I smirked back at him and I saw the minute surprise on his face. “Oh, is that so, Jaeger?” I said, making my voice as low as I could while still sounding sexy. It worked and he lost his previous facade as I spoke again. “Well, I could think of a few...special ways...to punish you.”

Eren blushed hard and stuttered out a few noises, but before he could say anything solid we heard Hanji’s voice from across the cafe. “Easy you two. You can plan your jumps into each other's pants later, and preferably not in front of us. But if you’re comfortable with telling us all of your plans then I guess-”

“No, Hanji, don’t even go there,” I growled dangerously at her, dropping the act permanently, more so from embarrassment that everyone could hear us. As much as Eren and I loved teasing each other like this, it would just get out of hand for us to talk like this in front of everyone else.

Eren let out his beautiful laugh and I relaxed back into my seat. I could honestly be in this place, with my life being just as it was, for the rest of my life. It was cluttered and messy, yes, but it was these moments that made me want to live them forever.

Eren suddenly let out an “Oh!” and I jolted a little at the loss if the comfortable silence that had enveloped us. He looked at me, and I could see instantly that he was nervous. Very, very nervous, from the trapped animal look in his eyes. I instantly thought to calm him, so I reached across the table and grabbed his hands gently and he jolted, looking at me, and a mixture of love, excitement, and nerves shone like a light out of his face. Eren was an open book to me, and somehow, I was the same to him.

“Eren, you look a mixture between thinking of doing something incredibly stupid and wanting to go hide in a hole.” He looked down at our hands and mumbled out, so quiet that I barely heard him, “Maybe both.”

Now I was curious. What would he be thinking about? I couldn’t think of what he would be so nervous about. But obviously whatever it was was eating at him. So I tried to console him. “Eren, just tell me; what’s going on?”

He looked back at me, and a light blush covered his nervous face and he shook his head a little before stuttering out, “Uh...w-what should I do i-if I need to ask someone s-something life-changing and I’m too scared to?”

Huh. I wonder what he was talking about. Maybe he needed to tell Mikasa something important, such as the new job he had just gotten. It was a pretty nice job, but I didn’t think that that would be life-changing. Maybe for her is was, but I hadn’t thought that Eren would be nervous about that kind of thing.

“Well,” I started, clearing my throat a little and thinking through what I should be saying, “if it really is going to be life-changing, and if it’s for the better, then I think you should tell them. If it benefits them and won’t ruin the relationship you’ve created with them, then you should just go for it.”

Eren looked at me for a moment in silence. Then he blurted, “But what if that’s exactly what I’m worried about? Ruining the relationship I have with the person?” I thought about that for a moment. He really was getting worried about this. “I still think you should go for it. you already said that you thought it would be life-changing for them in a good way, right?” He nodded slowly. “So then tell them. If they really want to keep that relationship, and they know you mean it in the best way, then they should understand that and listen to what you say.”

Eren looked thoughtful for a moment, before quietly saying, “So if I think it’d make them happy,” I nodded as he spoke, “and that they would value me enough to hear me out,” another nod, “then I shouldn’t have to worry about rejection and just ask them?”

I stopped nodding at that point. I hadn’t heard this part yet. “Who would reject you?” I asked, suddenly catching his worry. If anyone rejects anything from my Eren and it’s making him THIS worried, then they’d have me to deal with. He looked at me and then shakily called out, “Hey, Armin? I need that drink now.” He kept my gaze the entire time.

I suddenly felt the change in atmosphere in the shop. There was a split moment of silence before everyone kept on talking, but it was more of a distracted talking, a more talking but waiting for something to happen talking. The whole atmosphere was suddenly filled with nervous energy, and I had a feeling that something big was about to happen.

Armin walked over shakily with two drinks clutched in his hands. He gave a warm smile to me, then put a drink in front of me and said, “Enjoy!” before turning and giving another smile to Eren, but this one looked more like a supportive smile. Eren returned it before taking a deep breath and looking back at me.

Suddenly a thought hit me like a ton of bricks. Could this be...no, it couldn’t! Aren’t these things usually the other way around? Isn’t it usually MY character that does this to his character? I was suddenly abuzz with nervous energy, and our entire previous conversation fell into place. Was this about to happen to me?

He looked at me, and his nervous blush grew as we kept looking at each other. Then I looked down at my drink and realized that my drink was in a mug. I had never seen this mug before, and it looked brand new. It was beautiful.

I looked up at Eren with a question in my eyes, and he nodded and whispered, “Drink it.” I was feeling my own nerves skyrocket through the roof as I shakily reached forward and took the drink and shot him another glance before taking a sip. It was my favorite drink. I kept looking at him as I drank, because if what I thought was at the bottom of the mug WAS at the bottom then I needed to drink it carefully.

I shakily continued to bring the rim to my lips and drink, watching him, not wanting to look into the mug and possibly see what I thought might be there. I started to become impatient with how long it was taking to reach the bottom, so I started widely gulping the drink down. And then-I choked.

Something was caught in my throat. Shit, it hurt. All previous thoughts forgotten, I fell across the table wheezing and scrabbling for something to grab. Eren jumped up and started to freak out. I dimly heard his voice. “Nonono SHIT! This wasn’t at all how this was supposed to go! Damn it, Levi are you alright?” He raced around the table and I felt his arms around my waist, pulling hard and trying to get me to not choke anymore.

In the back of my consciousness, I thought that everyone in the shop must have been watching us in mild panic now. But I just focused on coughing and regaining oxygen. I felt whatever it was becoming loose and then I reached up a hand and coughed the thing into it. I regained my breath slowly, my eyes closed, and then I slowly cracked an eye.

And then both of my eyes flew open in surprise and I went limp as I stared at the beautiful ring in the center of my palm.

I fell backwards and pushed Eren down with me so that I ended up sitting on his lap on the floor. Eren grunted heavily as we landed, but I made no sound and just stared at the object in my hand, heavily covered in coffee and my saliva.

I had never seen such a beautiful ring.

It was simple, just a silver band with a diamond shape as the main point. But in the center of it was a small but beautiful jewel that somehow was silver and blue at the same time. I instantly knew why it was this particular jewel; it was meant to represent my eyes.

I hadn’t realized my breathing was coming out shallowly and I struggled to make it normal again. I had to settle for more shaky breathing, but I could feel nervous breathing from behind me, and so I slowly turned to look at him, and the look on his face made me nearly want to burst into tears. He looked so damn scared and so hopeful at the same time.

I breathed out a quiet, “Eren...” and tears started to slip out of his eyes while he looked at me, not making a sound. He shakily reached up a hand to brush at my cheek, and when it came away I saw wetness, proving that I was crying too. “Levi...are you-”

I didn’t let him finish. I spun around and planted a needy kiss on his lips. He let out a small whine and allowed himself to be pushed back by my weight and we landed on the floor, me on his chest. I kissed him, trying to convey all of my bursting emotions into the kiss, but he needed confirmation.

I stopped for a moment and leaned up, so I was sitting on his chest. As he looked at me, I was reminded of our first kiss, and how similar this was. And it was like we were going through the firsts again. Only this kind of first was the best.

I looked into his eyes and then fumbled a little with the ring I had clenched into my hand the whole time. Then I finally got it in between my thumb and index fingers and then brought it over to my left hand. Then I kept my gaze as I whispered, “Yes,” and slid the band over my ring finger.

Eren just stared at me in wonder as I let my right hand drop and kept my left hand up, fingers stretched apart, and the silver band gleaming on my finger, and then he let out the largest smile I’d seen in a long time and leaned up, making me fall onto his lap and then he held me tight as he peppered kisses all over my face.

“It wasn’t supposed to go like that, you know,” he mumbled happily between kisses, most of which I was attempting to return. “I figured,” I whispered as I kissed his nose and then we finally connected lips and just sat there on the floor kissing because now a new stage was opening up in our lives.

Then I heard clapping from the other side of the shop and I was reminded that all our friends were there. I pulled back and looked at them. Hanji had jumped up with her phone camera and had been filming, possibly the entire thing, and the rest were just clapping and smiling at us. They had known.

“Aw Levi! You’re smiling! Like, really, really smiling!” Hanji exclaimed, leaping around the room, still filming us, and then I realized that indeed, my smile was wide. And I’m pretty sure that had never happened before. But I didn’t care; I was too happy about what had just happened.

I looked around at everyone in the shop as they smiled and clapped for us, and their shining faces looked back. I looked back at Eren and his joyful smile was accompanied by tears gently slipping down his face. I leaned forward and kissed them away. He sighed a little and then pressed another long kiss to my lips and I felt his smile. I smiled back and we broke the kiss and settled for staring at eachother.

Eren grunted and shifted a little under me and laughed as he said, “Hey, can you get up? My legs are going numb.” I shifted off of him and he slowly stood and stretched before turning and extending a hand to me. I looked up at him, and in my mind that hand represented so much more that just a helping hand to get up. It meant stepping up into a new life, one where Eren and I would be by each other’s side for the rest of our lives, and just with that thought my heart beat faster. I wanted this.

So I reached out and took that hand, and he pulled me up to stand beside him, and then, our fingers interlocked, us two simple writers looked around my coffee shop and prepared to step into our new life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, please don't hate because of Eren suddenly proposing to Levi. I've never read one like that, so I wanted to change that little fact. Don't hate the writer! :)   
> Again, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR FOLLOWING ME THROUGH THIS WHOLE ADVENTURE!!!!! Love you all!


	31. Epilouge: Wedding Bells

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here comes the husband...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And HERE IT IS!  
> Sorry this took so long, but hey, her is the much-awaited wedding chapter. I'm done after this guys, just looking over all of this again has made me so happy, and again, thank you for sticking by me the whole time. Love you all, and here you go!

I bounced lightly on my toes, blades at the ready. I was incredibly nervous, but I tried to calm myself with reminders. I am the Corporal, I’ve faced worse than this. I can win. Then I needed to remind myself that I didn’t need to win anything. I’d already won everything I wanted. 

I waited for my cue. I looked at the people in front of me. They were all nervous as well. Erwin rocked back and forth, his blades simply hanging down from the sides. Hanji as usual couldn’t sit still, and her jumping was a little higher than normal. They were all I needed. 

There were still a few other people who had become my friends who were in front of those two, and they all looked excited. The new group, Mike, Auruo, Eld, Gunther (Eren and I had a laugh that we had met someone with the same name as our dog), and a tiny girl named Petra had all gained my trust, and thus were some of the chosen few allowed at this event. Plus, since they looked just like the team the Corporal had lost, it felt like a slap back at death that they were here to see this. 

The event was going to be really small, but it would mean the world to me. Eren and I had brought only our closest friends who would be good with our “mission”, as we had jokingly called it. 

I heard the start of the music, the beginning of the track. I sweated more than before and gripped my blades tighter. The doors at the end of the hall opened a little bit and two raven haired girls ran down in between seats with blades drawn. I had to crack a small smile at Mikasa’s daughters. She had gotten married only a few years ago but the girls had come quickly. 

The music began to swell with intensity, and then my “old team” burst into the doors, swinging blades with their cloaks swirling around them. Then they stood and confidently strode forward in their pairs. I couldn’t see over Erwin or Hanji’s tall ass heads, but if I could I would’ve seen them all take their spots at the front. 

Then the music changed moods, and Hanji let out a quiet cackle before bursting into the room. I could hear gasps and laughs as she undoubtedly dashed around the room, eyes wide with excitement behind her goggles. And I heard his laugh and the sound of it made my knees go a little weak. 

Then the music tone shifted again and Erwin looked back and gave me a smile before pushing open the doors and drawing a single blade, pointing it forward. That was all I saw before the doors shut again and then I was the only one left. 

I shifted from foot to foot, shaking in my boots. The harnesses hugged my legs and I was starting to wonder if this was a good idea. But then I heard the theme,  my theme, and I strode to the doors and took a deep breath before pushing them open with a bang. 

I looked around the room, my eyes never faltering in their single look, my face in perfect monotone. Everyone in the room rose and turned to me before as one swinging their fists over their hearts and yelling out, “Corporal.”

I looked around before pulling out my blades. The music had stopped as soon as I entered. Then I yelled out, just as planned, “At ease.” And then as everyone dropped their fists, Hanji and Erwin went to stand at either side of me. I had specifically requested this part, even though it went against tradition. Then again, this whole event went against tradition. 

And then softer music played and as it did I looked forward, past the orange jackets and green cloaks, past the harnesses and boots, and then my gaze slid up the stairs and then froze on the bottom of his boots. I hitched a quiet breath and slowly traveled upward. I looked up his boots and up his long legs covered in brown straps and white material, to where they disappeared under his cloak, then up the cloak to the button, where the orange collar peeked through the top and then finally rose to meet his beautiful blue-green eyes. 

Eren visibly took a deep breath when our eyes met, and then he raised his hands and unclasped his cloak, letting Armin catch it behind him. Now I could see his jacket and his shoulders and chest and there, there was the key hanging around his neck. 

I jumped a little when Hanji poked me in the arm. Shit, we had missed our cue because I was too busy staring at Eren. So I recomposed myself and started my walk forward, Hanji and Erwin acting as my “parents” as they walked me down the aisle. 

I knew I wouldn’t stay upright if I looked at Eren as I walked, so I looked to his sides. I caught Armin’s glance and he gave me and encouraging smile. Behind him stood two of Eren’s newer friends; two tall ass guys named Reiner and Bertholdt. I was definitely suspicious of them at first, since they looked just like the characters who were the Colossal and Armored titans from the anime, but they had turned out to be much nicer. 

To the other side Mikasa stood and looked at me, nodding and giving me permission for the last time. Behind her were two girls, also newer friends of my soon to be husband. One was a small blonde girl named Annie whose monotoned glare could nearly rival mine. Also someone who had been under my suspicion, because she looked so much like the female titan, but who turned out fine. Behind her was a brown haired girl whose fingers twitched, and I knew that Sasha was aching for food, like always. If she pulled out and ate those candy bars that I knew were inside her jacket pocket during the ceremony then I would kill her. 

There was only one person missing, and that was the minister who would be marrying us. Me and Eren. Together, as husband and...well, husband. The thought made me deliriously happy. But I still needed to know who was hitching us. 

We reached the bottom of the stairs and we paused. I looked from one side of myself to the other, meeting first Hanji’s teary eyes that are misting up her goggles and her shaky smile from her happiness for me, to then shifting to Erwin standing tall and strong over me, looking down and giving me a warm smile, and then giving me a discreet salute. My heart thumped painfully at their displays of support to me. My friends were giving me away. It meant more than I could express. 

But now wasn’t the time to blab to them. Not when my future, my husband, my lover, was up there waiting for me. So I nodded at them and then walked up the last few stairs on my own. My knees were shaking by the time I reached the top, and I took a deep breath before turning and facing Eren. 

Our eyes met again, and our gazes communicated everything; our nervousness, our excitement, and our love for each other sparked between us. I could sense more than see someone (Armin if I remember correctly) come up behind me and place the headband-like clip on the crown of my head, the thin veil covering my face. I had actually requested this part; I was alright being more like the woman in a marriage, since I had always wanted to know what it would be like to wear a veil at your wedding. And now here I was. 

The veil obscured my face more from Eren’s view than mine of him, so I was still able to see more than he could. I could nearly see when his eyes turned more searching, as if he wanted nothing more than to peek under and find my face again, just to stare at it. But then there was a small chuckle to our side, where the podium was, and I turned to look, because I could have sworn I didn’t see who the officiant was, but when I saw who was standing there I let out a gasp. 

“Mr. Zackly!” He chuckled again and put the big book down on the podium. “Ah, Eren and Levi. I never thought I would get to see this, much less be a part of it.” His voice had risen, so that now he was speaking to everyone. “So now would be an appropriate time to say a small something about when I first met you two.”

“You both amazed me when I saw you. I caught sight of your little group and I knew I had to speak with you. Then you two walked right by me, and I got to hear you speak. If we had known about you before, we probably would have had you all voice my characters.” I blushed hard under the veil. Really?

“I knew that I would need to end up knowing your names at the least, so it was a surprise when we quite literally bumped into each other. It was perfect. I planned in that moment to use your names in the final episode; it would be the perfect plot twist, I thought to myself.”

“Then the second year, when you came back as a couple, I was stunned. You two were so close, and I could see that you actually loved each other. I knew it was only a matter of time before you got married, so imagine my surprise when Eren called me and asked to me officiate the wedding for you two.”

I shot a glance at Eren, and he was blushing straight down to his neck. That adorable little shit, I thought fondly. He is amazing. 

“So now, I am extremely honored to be wedding the two of you together. So, shall we begin?” Mr. Zackly whipped a pair of round glasses out from his pocket and put them on, and I was reminded just how much it looked like the court room scene. But there was no such ill will here in this room. 

“You two will be bored, I’m sure, by all of the traditional speech, so I will go ahead to the part you are waiting for, yes?” A small laugh rumbled around the room, and I allowed a small smile. Yes, I couldn’t wait. 

“Eren Jaeger.” He straightened next to me and looked right ahead at the man, and brought his arm up in a salute. “Sir!” Darius looked at him and then a smirk crossed his face. “You have done the extraordinary, soldier. You have managed to woo Humanity’s Strongest. And he has agreed to be with you.”

Eren blushed hard and started to shake slightly. I wasn’t feeling any better. I had agreed, hadn’t I. He had managed to woo me, but not with his love at first. He more managed to seduce me with his awkwardness. 

“So, soldier, you must promise several things to this man whom you have declared your love to.” Darius opened the large book, but I caught a glimpse of the word, “Dictionary” on the side. I stifled a giggle. He wasn’t using an actual book. That funny bastard. 

“Do you, Eren Jaeger, agree to love and cherish this man who you have chosen?” Eren looked at the man with sparkling eyes. “Yes sir! I will!” The motivation poured through his voice, and I couldn’t help but believe him. My heart grew at his voice. 

“Do you agree to stay by his side for as long as both of you live, in sickness and in health?” Eren nodded as he spoke. “I do, sir!” His clenched hand quivered against his heart. 

“And as an afterthought, are you willing to follow him into all situations; to stay by his side and fight with him?” Darius raised an eyebrow and gave a little smirk. Great improvising. Eren looked at me and the raw emotion that covered his face left me blushing. “Always, sir,” he smiled as he spoke, strong and confident. 

Oh damn it, here we go. It was my turn to say my own vows. Darius nodded to Eren and then turned his gaze to me, and I shook a little bit. It was happening. But wait, I was the Corporal, and the Corporal never showed weakness. So I steeled my nerves and stood straighter, my eyes burning in my head with determination. Darius clearly noticed, as he arched an eyebrow just a little bit. 

“Corporal Levi.” I stood as straight as possible and then saluted myself, my fist covering my racing heart. “Sir,” I called out, responding, my excitement rising in me. 

“This boy, Eren Jaeger,” the older man gestured to Eren, “has declared his love for you in public, and he promises to cherish, follow, and love you for his entire life.” The words reverberated in my head. Eren had promised.  Eren had promised. 

“So now, Corporal, it is time you answer his call.” Darius opened the Dictionary again and I stifled a smile. I mentally prepared myself and my lines. “Do you, Levi Ackerman, agree to return and give love to the man you’ve chosen?” I took a breath and nodded as I spoke, my hand trembling already. “Yes, sir!” 

I could feel Eren’s eyes on me, but I had to focus on the words, or else his gaze would make me forget everything I was supposed to say. “Do you agree to be with and follow him?” I spoke loudly. “I do, sir!” 

“Do you agree to be with him, in both sickness, health, and in his case possible missing limbs?” Darius ignored the laughter that swept through the room, and I couldn’t help but smile. Darius Zackly was the perfect person to marry me and Eren together. 

I decided to improvise myself. “I’m always caring for my subordinate; you will have nothing to worry about,” I smirked, shooting a glance at Eren, where his face was red from attempting to contain his laughter. 

“And Corporal Levi, do you promise to stay by his side; to fight side by side with him, and to be with him in all situations?” My mind was brought back to our first titan run, where we fought at that final stretch, hand in hand, the perfect team, and how every run since we had done the same thing at that particular stretch. 

“Nothing would make me happier, sir,” I spoke a little quieter, and I saw an honest smile cross the older man’s face, and his glasses shone in the light, obscuring his eyes. He nodded and spoke loudly. “Good then. Bring forth the bands.” 

Eren and I looked back behind us to where Mikasa’s daughters were rushing down the aisle. They reached the front and leaped up the stairs, one settling behind each of us. The older one was behind Eren, and she nodded before walking in front of him and holding out a golden band. I had to admit, Mikasa’s daughters looked really cute in their tiny Survey Corps outfits, complete with boots and cape (no harnesses, because those would have had to be custom made). 

Eren bent over and took the ring from her and then straightened, looking at me dead in the eyes. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the older girl walk to her spot behind Eren again. But I wasn’t focusing on her. 

Eren took a deep breath and took a single step forward, reaching forward to take my hand. He traced the spot where my ring was going to be soon and I shivered in excitement. This was it. 

He raised my hand and then put the band around the tip of my finger. Then he spoke. “With this ring, I give to you everything I have to offer, especially my love.” He pushed the ring all the way, and when it finally hit the place at the base of my finger I felt a heavy thump in my chest. There it was. The sign. I was Eren’s. This represented my belonging to him, and his love for me. I looked up into his eyes, and was confused for a moment when I saw a small smirk before he leaned forward and whispered, so quietly I could barely hear it,

“My precious.” 

I wasn’t sure whether to blush or burst out in laughter. Thankfully he leaned back and stood in his place, a smile crossing his handsome face. Then I sensed movement behind me and the younger of Mikasa’s daughters came in front of me and held up her tiny cupped hands, where another gold band waited. 

I looked at the band; the symbol of my love being given to Eren, and him becoming mine, just as I had become his. My heart beating wildly, I reached out to take the ring and nod at the small girl, who smiled shyly at me and then rushed back to her place behind me. 

I moved my gaze to Eren, and the excitement and nervousness shone through his face as if it were the sun. This was the final deal. 

I took a step and a half forward (curse my short legs) and then took his hand. I raised it up, just as he had done to me, and then placed it at the tip of his own finger before catching his eyes, bright and swirling with emotion in deep veridian pools. 

“This ring represents my service, presence, and love to give to you as well,” I pulled him slightly forward, and he let out a small yelp as I pressed our noses together, acting my part. “So don’t lose it,” I smirked wide before I said, “Brat.” I heard Hanji laugh loudly behind me, as well as other people laughing as well in the audience. Then I pushed the ring down onto his finger, and it fit beautifully. 

I let go of him and stepped back to my original position. I looked down at his hand; at the new band that wrapped itself around him, like our promises to each other. There it was. Now there was just one thing left. We turned to Darius and he straightened his glasses and the book. 

“Well, now that everything seems to be in order,” he rumbled out in his deep voice, “I believe there is one thing left to do.” I could see from the corner of my eyes Hanji crying behind me, clutching Erwin’s arm, while he just watched me, a smile on his face. To Eren’s side, Armin was tearing up, and the two big ass trees behind him were smiling genuinely. 

“By the power vested in me, I can declare you two to be together as husband and husband,” he pronounced dramatically. Then he smiled softly and waved a hand at us. “You may now kiss each other, since neither of you is technically a bride.” A soft chuckle rose from everyone assembled. 

I took a deep breath and turned to Eren as he turned to me. I looked up and met his eyes, and the pools swallowed me, those eyes searching again, trying to find my face under the veil. He slowly walked forward, then carefully pinched the edges of the veil and slowly brought it over my head. I closed my eyes while I felt the material move, and when I felt it stop I opened them again slowly and looked at him. 

It was like I was seeing him again for the first time. The features I had loved before became real to me again, and everything was new and beautiful. He smiled, and I saw the beginnings of tears well up in his eyes, and I brought a hand up and wiped at the corner of one, and his breath caught as he took my hand in both of his own. 

“Hey Levi,” he whispered, so soft and intimate, and I peered deeply into his eyes, my own soul reflecting in mine. “Hey Eren,” I whispered back. He slowly brought his face closer until our noses were touching again, and then he whispered, “I love you,” before pressing his lips to mine. 

I let out a little sigh as he kissed me, and it was like the first time again, except more magical. We were bound; we were together. 

I heard clapping and cheering in the background, and we finally pulled apart, two new people. Married. Wow. 

“Holy shit,” I mumbled. Eren shot me a look and laughed out loud. I looked at him, confused. “Those would be your first words as my husband.” I smiled, and pulled him to down to mumble at his lips, “Of course,” before I kissed him again. 

Darius cleared his throat behind us and we broke apart to look at him. “Well, I can officially say that I can present Mr. and Mr...uh, who’s last name is it?” Eren and I looked at each other. We hadn’t thought about that.

“Not important,” Eren finally said, laughing as he pulled me close. Then he pulled me up bridal style and ran down the aisle with me, and I allowed it and laughed, my arms around his neck as we broke through the doors and down the hallway that led to the reception room. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here it was, the last bit that I was incredibly excited for. I was surprised I could move, I was so full of cake. Eren had thought after they had cut it that it would be me who got the cream in my face, but I smashed him first. The cake had been emblazoned with the Survey Corps logo on it. The Wings of Freedom had never tasted so good. 

Eren stood and walked over to Mike, who was DJing for us. He was surprisingly good. He whispered into the taller man’s ear, and he nodded, smiling as he pulled up a track. Then Eren walked over to me and pulled me out onto the center of the floor, and everyone stood at the edges, watching us. 

I was nervous. Eren hadn’t told me what song we would be dancing to. Only that it was different. He smiled radiantly again and then put a hand on my waist and another clutching my hand, and I followed his idea and put my free hand on his shoulder. 

Then suddenly a familiar beat started coming through the speakers and I looked at Eren with surprise and happiness. He grinned happily at me and spun me around as the beginning of Walk the Moon’s “Shut Up and Dance With Me” started playing, one of my all time favorite songs. 

As we spun, the dance floor began to fill up and others joined in the dance. Erwin started to krump and we laughed as we watched him. Hanji did the Wop and Petra wobbled (surprisingly well) and the room was soon filled with laughter and crazy movements. 

Eren and I danced together in our own little world, alternating between more elegant dancing to just letting go and moving in strange movements that normally would have embarrassed me, but right now they didn’t bother me at all. I was happy, and as the song started to come to an end Eren grabbed me again pulled me close. 

“Levi,” he whispered. I put a hand to his face and looked into his eyes. He was mine, and I was his, and we were happy. 

“Eren.” 

Now we could head out together, and we could be ourselves. Now there would be  new memories made, new friends, new adventures, maybe even kids (holy shit), and it all started here. 

We kissed again as the song ended, and in the chaos around us, we found love together, us hopeless writers, and we were beautiful. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus ends Coffee Writers. *shuts the book*


	32. Chapter 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> LOVE YOU.

Thank you all for your support! *sends kisses*

Now go back a chapter and read the wedding!

**Author's Note:**

> Oh Levi, being the little fanboy he is. I should also say that I based the idea of Once in a Dark Moon off of The Intern, because that's what I see all over my tumblr. So kudos to that story!


End file.
